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THE    EXPOSITOR'S   BIBLE 


EDITED   BY  THE    REV. 


W.     ROBERTSON    NICOLL,    M.A.,    LL.D. 

Editor  of  ^^  The  Expositor,''  etc. 


THE    EPISTLE    TO    THE    PHILIPPIANS 


BY 


ROBERT    RAINY,    D.D. 


NEW    YORK 

A.    C.    ARMSTRONG    AND    SON 

51    EAST    TENTH    STREET 
1900 


THE     EXPOSITOR'S     BIBLE 

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THE  EPISTLfe   ^'"^^' 


TO   THE 


PHILIPPIANS 


BY 

V 

ROBERT    RAINY,    D.D 

PRINCIPAL   OF   NEW   COLLEGE,    EDINBURGH 


NEW    YORK 

A.    C.    ARMSTRONG    AND    SON 

51    EAST    TENTH    STREET 
1900 


Printed  by  Hazelly  Watson^  <&>  i^iney,  Ld.,  London  and  Aylesbury,  England. 


PREFATORY  NOTE. 

NOT  much  need  be  said  by  way  of  preface,  in 
addition  to  what  is  suggested  in  the  intro- 
ductory chapter. 

It  may  be  observed,  however,  that  the  Apostle's 
teaching  repeatedly  touches  on  the  question,  How 
the  problem  of  practical  human  life  on  this  earth  is  to 
be  conceived  and  dealt  with  under  the  light  and  the 
influences  of  Christianity?  The  thought  occurred 
that  some  expository  passages  might  be  superseded 
by  an  appendix  summing  up  in  one  view  the  principles 
conceived  to  underlie  the  Apostle's  way  of  dealing 
with  such  topics,  which  could  be  referred  to  on  each 
separate  occasion  :  and  such  a  statement  was  prepared. 
It  was,  however,  finally  judged  more  suitable  to  the 
nature  of  an  exposition  to  keep  as  close  as  possible 
to  the  Apostle's  turn  of  thought  in  each  of  the  cases 
in  which  he  approaches  the  subject,  rather  than  to 
try  to  secure  brevity  by  a  more  summary  treatment. 

A  few  sentences  have  been  transferred  from  a 
lecture  on  the  Apostle  Paul,  published  some  years 
ago. 


CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER   I. 

PAGE 

INTRODUCTORY:    THE  SALUTATION  ...  -  3 

CHAPTER  II. 

THE  apostle's  MIND  ABOUT  THE   PHILIPPIANS    .  .        I9 

CHAPTER   ni. 

HOW    THE    PHILIPPIANS   SHOULD   THINK   OF    PAUL   AT 

ROME 45 

CHAPTER   IV. 

THE   CHOICE   BETWEEN   LIVING  AND   DYING  ...        65 

CHAPTER  V. 

UNDAUNTED  AND   UNITED   STEADFASTNESS    ..."]•] 

CHAPTER  VI. 

THE   MIND   OF  CHRIST 95 

CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  MIND   OF   CHRIST  {C07lti7iued)  .  .  .  .Ill 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

WORKING  AND  SHINING I31 


viii  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER    IX. 

PAGE 

TIMOTHY  AND   EPAPHRODITUS 157 

CHAPTER  X. 

NO   CONFIDENCE    IN   THE   FLESH 171 

CHAPTER  XI. 

THE   KNOAVLEDGE   OF   CHRIST 1 99 

CHAPTER  XII. 

THE   RIGHTEOUSNESS   OF   FAITH 21'] 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

RESURRECTION   LIFE  AND   DAILY  DYING  .  .  -      "^^ 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

CHRISTIAN  LIFE  A  RACE 259 

CHAPTER  XV. 

ENEMIES   OF  THE   CROSS 28 1 

CHAPTER   XVI. 

OUR   CITY  AND   OUR   COMING   KING  ....     299 

CHAPTER   XVIL 

PEACE   AND  JOY  .  .  .  .  •  •  •      JI? 

CHAPTER   XVIII. 

THE   THINGS   TO   FIX  UPON 2>-^'J 

CHAPTER   XIX. 

GIFTS  AND  SACRIFICES       .  .  •  •     353 


INTRODUCTORY.      THE  SALUTATION, 


"Paul  and  Timothy,  servants  of  Jesus  Christ,  to  all  the  saints  in 
Christ  Jesus  which  are  at  Philippi,  with  the  bishops  and  deacons : 
Grace  to  you  and  peace  from  God  our  Father  and  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ."— Phil.  i.  i,  2  (R.V.). 


CHAPTER    I. 

INTRODUCTORY.      THE  SALUTATION. 

THE  sixteenth  chapter  of  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles 
contains  the  account  of  the  Apostle  Paul's  first 
intercourse  with  the  Philippians,  and  of  the  "  beginning 
of  the   gospel "    there.     The   date   may    be   fixed    as 
A.D.    51.     After  the  council   at  Jerusalem   (Acts  xv.), 
and  after  the  dissension  between   Paul  and   Barnabas 
(ver.  39),  the  Apostle  of  the  Gentiles,  accompanied  by 
Silas,    took    his    journey   through    Syria   and    Cilicia. 
"  Confirming    the    Churches,"   he   went   over   a   good 
deal    of  ground    which   he  had   traversed  before.     At 
L^^stra   he   assumed  Timothy  as   an    additional    com- 
panion and,  assistant ;  and  he  passed  on,  guided  in  a 
very  special  manner  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  until  he  arrived 
at  Troas.     Here  a  Divine  warning,  in  a  dream,  deter- 
mined him  to  break  ground  in  a  new  field.     The  little 
company,  to  which  Luke  was  now  added,  passed  on  to 
Macedonia,  and,  having  landed  at  Neapolis,  where  they 
do   not   seem   to   have   made  any  stay  or   found    any 
opportunity  of  preaching,  they  came  to  Philippi.     This 
therefore  was  the  first  city  in  Europe  in  which,  so  far 


4  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


as  we  have  any  distinct  intimation,  the  gospel  of  the 
grace  of  God  was  declared. 

Philippi  was  a  city  of  some  importance,  and  had  the 
position  and  privileges  of  a  Roman  colony.  It  was 
situated  in  a  fruitful  district,  was  near  to  gold  mines, 
and  was  also  near  enough  to  the  sea  to  serve  as  a  depot 
for  a  good  deal  of  Asiatic  commerce. 

It  is  hardly  necessary  to  remind  readers  of  the  Scrip- 
ture how  Lydia  and  others  received  the  word  ;  how 
the  preachers  were  followed  by  the  damsel  with  the 
spirit  of  divination  ;  how,  when  that  damsel  had  been 
silenced  by  Paul,  her  masters  raised  a  tumult  against 
Paul  and  Silas,  and  got  them  scourged  and  cast  into 
prison ;  how  the  earthquake,  which  followed  during 
the  night,  resulted  in  the  conversion  of  the  jailor,  and 
in  Paul  and  Silas  being  sent  forth  from  the  city  with 
honour.  Perhaps  Luke  and  Timothy  remained  behind 
at  PhiUppi,  and  continued  to  edify  the  believers.  At 
any  rate,  Paul  himself  had  by  this  time  continued  there 
*'  many  days."  Two  short  visits  of  the  Apostle  to 
Philippi  at  a  subsequent  time  are  known  to  us  (Acts 
XX.  2,  6). 

The  Church  thus  founded  proved  to  be  an  interesting 
one,  for  it  possessed  much  of  the  simplicity  and  earnest- 
ness of  true  Christianity.  Both  in  the  Epistles  to  the 
Corinthians  and  in  this  Epistle,  the  Philippians  are 
singled  out,  above  all  Churches,  for  their  cordiality  of 
feeling  towards  the  Apostle  who  had  brought  to  them 
the    knowledge    of    the    truth.       They    made    liberal 


i.  I,  2.]  INTRODUCTORY. 


contributions  for  the  furtherance  of  his  work  in  other 
regions,  beginning  shortly  after  he  left   Philippi,  and 
repeating  them   from   time  to  time  afterwards.     They 
seem  to  have  been  remarkably  free  from  some  of  the 
defects  incidental  to  those  early  Churches,  and  to  the 
Churches  at  all   periods.       The  Apostle's  commenda- 
tions of  them  are  peculiarly  warm  and  glowing ;   and 
scarcely  anything  had    to    be   noticed  in   the   way  of 
special   warning,   except    a    tendency  to    disagreement 
among  some  of   their  members.     It  does  not  appear 
that  there  was  any  great  number  of  Jews  at  Philippi, 
and    we    find    no    trace   of  a    synagogue.     This    may 
account  in  some  measure  for  their  freedom   from   the 
Judaising   tendency:    for  we  find  the    Philippians  ex- 
horted, indeed,  to  beware  of  that  evil,  but  not  repre- 
hended as  if  it  had  taken  any  strong  hold  among  them. 
On  the  other  hand,  they  seem  to  have  remained  in  a 
good  measure  free  from  evils  to  which  Gentile  Churches 
were  most  exposed,  and  which,  at  Corinth  for  example, 
produced  much  that  was  disheartening  and  perplexing. 
Eleven  years,  probably,  had  now  passed  since  Paul 
had  brought  to  Philippi  the  knowledge  of  Christ  Jesus. 
During  that  time  he  had  undergone  many  vicissitudes, 
and  now  he  had  been  for  some  time  a  prisoner  at  Rome. 
Probably  he  had  already  written   the   Epistles  to    the 
Ephesians,   the  Colossians,  and   to   Philemon.      Com- 
paring these  with  our  Epistle,  we   may  conclude  that 
his  prospects  as  a  prisoner  had  not  improved,  but  rather 
darkened,  since  the  date  of  those  letters.     At  this  time. 


THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


then,  Epaphroditus  arrived,  apparently  after  a  dangerous 
journey,  bearing  with  him  a  supply  for  the  Apostle's 
wants,  bringing  tidings  of  the  state  of  the  Philippian 
Church,  and  assuring  him  of  their  sympathy  and  their 
prayers  on  his  behalf.  It  is  no  wonder  that,  in  these 
circumstances,  the  Epistle  bears  marks  of  having  been 
written  by  the  Apostle  with  a  special  flow  of  tenderness 
and  of  affection. 

The  scope  of  the  letter  may  be  briefly  stated. 
After  the  usual  inscription  and  salutation,  the  Apostle 
expresses  (as  he  does  so  often  in  his  Epistles)  his 
thankfulness  for  what  the  Philippians  had  attained,  and 
his  desire  that  they  might  grow  to  yet  higher  things. 
He  goes  on  to  tell  them  how  matters  stood  with  himself, 
and  opens  up,  as  to  those  whom  he  reckons  trusted 
friends,  the  manner  in  which  his  mind  was  exercised 
under  these  providences.  Returning  to  the  Philip- 
pians, and  aiming  at  this,  that  they  and  he  might  have 
growing  fellowship  in  all  Christian  grace,  he  goes  on 
to  set  before  them  Christ,  specially  in  His  lowliness 
and  self-sacrifice.  This  is  the  grand  end ;  attainment 
to  His  likeness  is  work  for  all  their  lives.  Paul  sets 
forth  how  earnestly  his  heart  is  set  on  this  object, 
and  what  means  he  is  taking  to  advance  it.  After  a 
brief  digression  relating  to  his  circumstances  and 
theirs,  he  returns  again  to  the  same  point.  In  order 
that  defects  may  be  removed,  dangers  avoided,  pro- 
gress made,  Christ  must  be  their  joy,  their  trust,  their 
aim,  their  very  life.     They,   like  the  Apostle   himself, 


i.  I,  2.]  INTRODUCTORY. 


must  press  on,  never  content  till  the  consummate  sal- 
vation is  attained  (iii.  21).  If  this  should  be  so,  his 
desires  for  them  would  be  fulfilled.  So  he  closes  (iv.  2) 
with  directions  rising  out  of  this  central  view,  and  with 
renewed  expression  of  the  comfort  he  had  derived  from 
their  affectionate  remembrance.  Their  goodwill  to  the 
cause  in  which  his  life  was  spent,  and  to  himself,  had 
cheered  his  heart.  And  he  took  it  as  God's  blessing  to 
him  and  to  them. 

Such  is  a  brief  outline  of  the  course  of  thought.  But 
the  Epistle,  while  perfect  in  the  unity  of  its  feeling 
and  of  its  point  of  view,  is  remarkable  for  the  way 
in  which  it  alternates  between  matters  proper  to  the 
Philippians,  including  the  instruction  Paul  saw  fit  to 
impress  upon  them,  and  matters  personal  to  himself. 
The  Apostle  seems  to  feel  sure  of  affectionate  sympathy 
in  both  regions,  and  in  both  equally ;  therefore  in  both 
his  heart  utters  itself  without  difficulty  and  without 
restraint.  Ch.  i.  3-1 1,  i.  27 — ii.  16,  iii.  I — iv.  9,  are 
occupied  with  the  one  theme,  and  i.  12-26,  ii.  17-30, 
iv.  10-21,  with  the  other.  In  short,  more  than  any 
other  Epistle,  if  we  except,  perhaps,  that  to  Philemon, 
the  Epistle  to  the  Philippians  has  the  character  of 
an  outpouring.  The  official  aims  and  obligations  of 
the  Christian  instructor  are  fused,  as  it  were,  in  the 
glowing  affection  of  the  personal  friend.  He  is  sure  of 
his  place  in  the  hearts  of  his  correspondents,  and  he 
knows  how  glad  they  will  be  to  be  assured  of  the  place 
they  hold  in  his. 


THE  EPISTLE    TO   THE  PHHIPPIANS. 


Let  us  now  attend  to  the  inscription  and  salutation. 
Those  who  send  the  Epistle  are  Paul  and  Timothy. 
Yet  plainly  we  are  not  to  regard  it  as  a  joint  Epistle 
proceeding  from  both  equally  ;  for  it  is  Paul  who  speaks 
throughout,  in  his  own  name  and  by  his  own  authority. 
Timothy  only  joins,  as  Sosthenes  and  Silas  do  in  other 
cases,  in  heartily  commending  to  the  Church  at  Philippi 
whatever  the  Epistle  contains.  As  there  was  harmony 
between  the  two  labourers  when  they  laid  the  founda- 
tion at  Philippi,  so  there  is  also  in  the  building  up. 
Timothy  is  joined  in  the  love  and  care  ;  but  the  authority 
is  Paul's.  Both  alike  are  called  "  servants  of  Jesus 
Christ "  ;  for  to  this  Church  no  further  commendation 
and  no  rehearsal  of  a  special  right  to  speak  and  teach 
are  needed.  And  yet,  to  understanding  hearts,  what 
commendation  could  be  more  weighty  ?  If  these  two 
men  are  called  and  allowed  by  Christ  to  be  His  servants, 
if  they  are  loyal  and  faithful  servants,  if  they  come  on 
an  errand  on  which  Christ  has  sent  them,  if  they  deliver 
His  message  and  do  His  work,  what  more  need  be  said  ? 
This  is  honour  and  authority  enough — to  be,  in  our 
degree,  Christ's  servants.  But  the  word  is  stronger  : 
it  means  bondservants,  or  slaves, — such  as  are  the 
master's  property,  or  are  at  his  absolute  disposal.  So 
Paul  felt ;  for  we  are  not  to  reckon  this  to  be,  on  his 
part,  a  mere  phrase.  Already,  in  this  word,  we  re- 
cognise the  sense  of  entire  consecration  to  his  Master  and 
Lord ;  in  which,  as  we  shall  see,  he  felt  he  could  count 
upon  the  hearty  sympathy  of  his  Philippian  friends. 


i.  I,  2.]  THE  SALUTATION. 


Those  who  are  addressed  are,  in  the  first  place,  "  all 
the  saints  in  Christ  Jesus  who  are  at  Philippi."  The 
saints,  or  holy  ones,  is  a  common  expression  in  the 
Scriptures.  The  word  "  sanctify "  is  applied  both  to 
persons  and  to  things.  Bible-readers  will  have  noticed 
that  the  term  seems  to  vibrate  or  vacillate  between  two 
meanings, — signifying  on  the  one  hand  the  production 
of  personal  intrinsic  holiness,  and  on  the  other  merely 
consecration,  or  setting  apart  of  anything  to  God's  service. 
Now  the  connection  of  both  meanings  will  appear,  if  we 
mark  how  both  meet  in  the  word  as  it  is  applied  to  the 
children  of  God.  For  such  are  separated,  set  apart  for 
God  from  sin  and  from  the  world  ;  not,  however,  by  a 
mere  outward  destination,  devoting  them  to  a  certain 
use  and  service,  but  by  an  internal  hallowing,  which 
makes  the  man  really  in  his  inward  nature  holy,  fit 
for  God's  service  and  God's  fellowship.  This  is  done 
by  the  regeneration  of  the  Spirit,  and  by  His  indwelling 
thereafter.  Hence,  to  distinguish  this  consecration 
from  the  mere  outward  ceremonial  sanctification,  which 
was  so  temporary  and  shadowy,  we  find  the  Apostle 
Peter  (i.  2)  saying  that  God's  children  are  chosen  "  by 
sanctification  of  the  Spirit,  unto  obedience  and  sprink- 
ling of  the  blood  of  Jesus."  For  the  ancient  Israel 
was  sanctified  to  obedience  in  another  manner  (Exod. 
xxiv.  6). 

Now  because  this  real  consecration  takes  place  when 
we  are  grafted  into  Christ  by  faith,  because  the  Spirit 
comes  to  us  and  abides  in  us  as  the  Spirit  of  Christ, 


lo  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


because  whatever  the  Spirit  does,  as  our  Sanctifier,  has 
its  rise  from  Christ's  redeeming  work,  because  He  unites 
us  to  Christ  and  enables  us  to  cleave  to  Christ  and 
hold  fellowship  with  Him,  therefore  those  who  are  thus 
sanctified  are  called  saints  in  Jesus  Christ.  It  is  the 
Spirit  who  sanctifies ;  but  He  does  so  inasmuch  as  He 
roots  us  in  Christ  and  builds  us  up  in  Christ.  There- 
fore saints  are  sanctified  by,  or  of,  the  Spirit ;  but  they 
are  sanctified  (or  holy)  in  Christ  Jesus. 

This  expression,  ''saints,"  or  some  phrase  that  is 
equivalent,  occurs  commonly  in  the  Epistles  as  the 
designation  of  the  parties  addressed.  And  two  things 
are  to  be  observed  in  connection  with  it.  First,  when 
the  Apostle  addresses  ''  all  the  saints,"  in  any  Epistle, 
he  is  not  shutting  out  any  professed  members  of  the 
Church,  any  professed  believers  in  the  Lord.  He  never 
speaks  at  the  outset  of  an  Epistle  as  if  he  meant  to 
make  deliberate  distinction  between  two  several  classes 
of  members  of  the  Church  :  as  who  should  say,  ''  I  write 
now  to  some  part  of  the  Church,  viz.,  the  saints  ;  as 
for  the  rest,  I  do  not  now  address  them."  Hence  we 
find  the  term  used  as  equivalent  to  the  Church — ''  to 
the  Church  of  God  which  is  at  Corinth,  with  all  the 
saints  which  are  in  all  Achaia,"  and  again  "  to  them  .  .  . 
that  are  called  to  be  saints."  We  shall  see  presently  the 
lesson  which  this  is  fitted  to  teach.  But,  secondly,  on 
the  other  hand,  the  Apostle's  use  of  the  word  makes  it 
clear  that  he  uses  it  in  the  full  sense  which  we  have 
explained,  of  a  real  saintship.     He  does  not  restrain 


i.  I,  2.J  THE  SALUTATION. 


II 


the  sense  to  some  merely  external  saintship,  as  if  his 
meaning  were  '*  professing  Christians  whether  they 
are  real  or  not."  The  word  stands,  in  the  inscriptions, 
as  equivalent  to  "sanctified  in  Christ  Jesus,"  "  faithful 
in  Christ  Jesus,"  "  beloved  of  God" ;  or  as  in  2  Peter  i., 
"  them  that  have  obtained  like  precious  faith  with  us," 
and  in  i  Peter,  "  Elect  according  to  the  foreknowledge 
of  God  unto  obedience."  Thus  then  we  are  to  take 
it : — The  Apostle  wrote  to  the  visible,  or  the  professed 
and  accepted  followers  of  the  Lord,  on  the  understand- 
ing that  they  were  what  they  professed  to  be.  He  was 
not  to  question  it :  he  assumed  that  they  were  saints  of 
God,  for  to  profess  the  faith  of  Christ  is  to  claim  that 
character.  He  rejoiced  to  hope  that  it  would  prove  to 
be  so,  and  gladly  took  note  of  everything  which  tended 
to  assure  him  that  their  holiness  was  real.  He  proclaims 
to  them,  in  the  character  of  saints,  the  privileges  and 
the  obligations  that  pertain  to  saints.  It  was  the 
business  of  every  man  to  look  well  to  the  reality  of  his 
faith,  and  to  try  the  grounds  on  which  he  took  his 
place  with  those  addressed  as  beloved  of  God  and 
called  to  be  saints.  There  might  be  some  who  had 
but  a  name  to  live  (2  Cor,  xiii.  5).  If  so,  it  was  not 
the  Apostle's  part,  writing  to  the  Church,  to  allow  that 
possibility  to  confuse  or  lower  the  style  of  his  address 
to  Christ's  Church.  He  wrote  to  all  the  saints  in 
Christ  Jesus  who  were  at  Philippi. 

This  is  evident   from  the  strain  of  all  the   Pauline 
Epistles,  and  it  is  important  to  observe  it  and  apply  it. 


12  THE   EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


Otherwise  we  shall  readily  fall  into  this  way  of  reason- 
ing,-—  "Since    there    must    have    been  some    in    these 
Churches    who    were    only    nominally    and    not    really 
believers,  the  word  saints  must  include  such  ;  therefore 
it  can  imply  only  an  outward  separation  of  men,  apart 
from  any  determination  of  their  inward  state."     If  we 
do  so,  then  everything  the  Apostle  says  to  saints,  their 
standing,  their  privileges,   their  obligations,  and  their 
hopes,  will  come  to   be   strained   and    lowered   in   the 
interpretation,  so  as  to  mean  only  that  such  privileges 
and  blessings  are  somehow  attainable,  and  if  attained 
may  also  on  certain  terms  be  secured.     The  interpreta- 
tion of  the  Apostle's  teaching  on  these  subjects  will,  in 
short,  be  what  it  must  be,  if  it  is  taken  to  apply  at  once, 
in  his  intention,  to  those  who  are  indeed  saints  and  to 
those  who  are  not.     This  line,  in  point  of  fact,  has  been 
taken,   in  the  interpretation  of  the  Epistles,   so  as  to 
resolve  everything  the  Apostle  says  about  the  eternal 
life  of  saved  men,  as  actually  theirs,  from  their  election 
downwards,  into  a  mere  matter  of  outward  privileges. 
This  view,  no  doubt,  involves  a  straining  of  plain  words. 
Yet  it  will  always  seem  to  force  itself  upon  us,  unless 
we  hold  fast  (what  is  indeed  demonstrably  true)  that 
when  the  Apostle  speaks  to  saints,  he  says  what  should 
be  said  to  those  who  are  indeed   saints,   and  on   the 
understanding  that  those  whom  he  addresses  are  such. 
In  like  manner,  on  the  other  side,  we  have  a  lesson 
to    learn    from    the    unhesitating   way    in    which    the 
Apostle  writes  to  the  saints,  and    sends  the  letter  to 


i .  1 ,  2. 1  THE  SA L UTA  TION.  1 3 


the  members  of  a  Christian  Church  as  the  parties  in- 
tended. Me  may  have  some  things  to  reprehend  ;  he 
may  even  have  to  express  fears,  when  things  have 
gone  amiss,  that  some  in  the  Church  may  yet  prove  to 
be  no  saints.  Yet  writing  to  the  Church,  he  writes  to 
saints.  Let  us  learn  from  this  what  those  lay  claim 
to  who  become  members  of  Christ's  Church,  and  what 
responsibilities  they  take  on.  They  claim,  in  Christ, 
the  salvation  which  makes  men  saints — i.e.,  persons  set 
apart  under  the  influence  of  the  Holy  Spirit  to  enjoy 
Christ's  forgiveness  and  to  walk  in  His  ways.  Christ 
does  this  for  us,  if  He  does  a  Saviour's  ^ork.  It  is  a 
thing  incongruous,  a  thing,  in  the  Apostle's  view,  not 
to  be  taken  for  granted,  that  any  one  shall  hold  his 
place  in  Christ's  Church  who  is  worldly,  earthly,  un- 
holy. There  may  be  such,  but  Paul  will  not  assume 
it ;  he  will  not  measure  the  Christianity  of  Christ's 
Church  by  any  such  standard.  Neither  will  he  go  about 
to  determine  whether  perhaps  it  is  so  or  not  in  the  case 
of  any  who  are  professing  Christ  in  the  ordinary  way. 
I/any  have  entered  Christ's  Church  who  are  content  to 
continue  in  worldliness  and  sin,  not  seeking  in  Christ 
the  grace  which  saves,  that  is  solely  their  own  personal 
sin,  and  in  it  they  lie  unto  the  Lord.  But  not  for  that 
will  the  Apostle  come  down  to  speak  to  Christ's  Church 
as  if  it  should  be  thought  of  as  a  company  to  which 
holy  and  unholy  may  equally  well  belong.  If  any  be 
there  who  are  in  no  vital  sense  saints,  their  intrusion 
will  not  hinder  Paul  from  speaking  to  the  Church  of 


14  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


God  in  its  own  proper  character  and  according  to  its 
calling. 

But  let  it  be  remarked  at  the  same  time,  that  this 
same  fact  shows  us  that  the  Apostle  was  wont  to  judge 
of  men  and  Churches  charitably ;  yes,  with  a  very  large 
charity.  We  may  be  very  sure  that  there  was  a  good 
deal  in  all  those  Churches,  and  a  great  deal  in  some, 
that  needed  to  be  judged  charitably.  They  were  not  all 
clear,  eminent,  conspicuous  saints;  so  far  from  that, 
there  might  well  be  some  whole  Churches  in  which 
saintship  was,  so  far  as  man's  inspection  could  perceive, 
faint  and  questionable.  But  the  Apostle  was  far  from 
thinking  of  shutting  out  the  man  whose  faith  was  weak, 
whose  attainments  were  small,  whose  regard  to  Christ 
was  but  a  struggling  and  germinating  thing.  Far  from 
being  disposed  to  shut  him  out,  no  doubt  the  Apostle's 
whole  desire  was  to  shut  such  an  one  in,  among  the 
saints  in  Jesus  Christ. 

To  be  accepted  in  the  Beloved,  to  be  sanctified  in 
Christ  Jesus,  is  a  very  great  thing.  No  less  than  this 
great  thing  Christ  offers,  and  no  less  we  humbly  claim 
in  faith.  Also  it  is  no  less  than  this  that  Christ 
bestows  on  those  who  come  to  Him.  Let  Christians, 
on  the  one  hand,  look  to  Christ,  as  able  and  wilhng  to 
do  no  less  than  this  even  for  them ;  on  the  other  hand, 
let  them  look  to  themselves,  that  they  neither  deceive 
themselves  with  false  pretences,  nor  trifle  idly  with  so 
great  a  gospel.  And  in  the  case  of  others,  let  hasty 
and  needless  adverse  judgments  be  avoided.     Let  us 


i.  I.  2.]  THE  SALUTATION.  15 


be  glad  to  think  that  Christ  may  see  His  own,  where 
our  dim  sight  can  find  but  scanty  tokens  of  His  work. 

Along  with  the  saints  the  letter  specifies,  in  particular, 
the  bishops  and  deacons.  The  former  were  the  officers 
who  took  the  oversight,  as  the  word  implies ;  the 
deacons  those  who  rendered  service,  especially  in  the 
Church's  outward  and  pecuniary  concerns.  These  two 
standing  orders  are  recognised  by  the  Apostle.  It  is 
obvious  that  this  does  not  suggest  diocesan  Episcopacy, 
for  that  implies  three  orders,  the  highest  being  a  single 
bishop,  to  the  exclusion  of  others  assuming  the  office 
in  that  place. 

It  is  more  important  to  observe  that  the  Epistle  is  not 
directed  to  the  bishops  primarily,  or  as  if  they  were 
entitled  to  come  between  the  people  and  the  message. 
It  is  directed  to  all  the  saints.  To  them  the  Epistle,  to 
them  all  the  Scriptures  belong,  as  their  own  inheritance, 
which  no  man  may  take  from  them.  In  so  far  as  the 
bishops  and  deacons  are  distinguished  from  other 
saints,  the  Scriptures  pertain  to  them  that  they  may 
learn  their  own  duty,  and  also  may  help  the  people 
in  the  use  and  enjoyment  of  that  which  is  already 
theirs. 

Now  follows  the  salutation — Grace  be  unto  you  and 
peace.  This  is  the  ordinary  salutation,  varied  and 
amplified  in  a  few  of  the  Epistles.  It  may  be  said  to 
express  the  sum  of  all  Christian  well-being  in  this  life. 

Grace  is,  first  of  all,  the  word  which  expresses  the 
free  favour  of  God,  manifested  towards  the  unworthy 


1 6  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

in  Christ  Jesus.  But  it  is  further  extended  in  meaning 
to  that  which  is  the  fruit  of  this  favour,  to  the  principles 
and  dispositions  in  the  mind  which  result  from  grace, 
which  recognise  grace,  which  in  their  nature  correspond 
to  the  nature  of  grace.  In  this  sense  it  is  said  '*grow 
in  grace."  Peace  is  the  well-grounded  tranquillity  and 
sense  of  well-being  which  arises  from  the  sight  of  God's 
grace  in  Christ,  from  faith  in  it,  and  experience  of  it. 
Grace  and  peace  are  the  forerunners  of  glory.  That  is 
a  blessed  company  to  which  so  great  a  fulness  of  good 
is  commended,  as  ordinarily  theirs. 

And  from  whom  is  this  good  expected  to  proceed  ? 
From  God  our  Father  and  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  The 
Father  who  loved  us,  the  Son  who  charged  Himself  with 
the  burden  of  our  salvation,  impart  a  grace  and  a 
peace  fragrant  with  that  Divine  love  and  charged  with 
the  efficacy  of  that  blessed  mediation.  If  any  one 
wonders  why  the  Holy  Spirit  is  left  out,  a  reason  may  be 
given  for  it.  For  if  we  look  to  the  substance  of  the 
blessings,  what  are  this  grace  and  peace  but  the  Holy 
Spirit  Himself  dwelling  in  us,  revealing  tons  the  Father 
and  the  Son  from  whom  He  comes,  and  enabling  us  to 
continue  in  the  Son  and  in  the  Father  ? 


THE  APOSTLE'S  MIND  ABOUT  THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


17 


"  I  thank  my  God  upon  all  my  remembrance  of  you,  always  in 
every  supplication  of  mine  on  behalf  of  you  all  making  my  supplication 
with  joy,  for  your  fellowship  in  furtherance  of  the  gospel  from  the 
first  day  until  now;  being  confident  of  this  very  thing,  that  He  which 
began  a  good  work  in  you  will  perfect  it  until  the  day  of  Jesus  Christ : 
even  as  it  is  right  for  me  to  be  thus  minded  on  behalf  of  you  all, 
because  I  have  you  in  my  heart,  inasmuch  as,  both  in  my  bonds  and 
in  the  defence  and  confirmation  of  the  gospel,  ye  all  are  partakers 
with  me  of  grace.  For  God  is  my  witness,  how  I  long  after  you  all  in 
the  tender  mercies  of  Christ  Jesus,  And  this  I  pray,  that  your  love 
may  abound  yet  more  and  more  in  knowledge  and  all  discernment ; 
so  that  ye  may  approve  the  things  that  are  excellent ;  that  ye  may  be 
sincere  and  void  of  offence  unto  the  day  of  Christ ;  being  filled  with 
the  fruits  of  righteousness,  which  are  through  Jesus  Christ,  unto  the 
glory  and  praise  of  God." — Phil.  i.  3-1 1  (R.V.). 


18 


CHAPTER   II. 

THE  APOSTLE'S  MIND  ABOUT  THE  PHIUFPIANS. 

AFTER  the  salutation,  the  first  thing  in  the  Epistle 
is  a  warm  utterance  of  the  feelings  and  the 
desires  which  Paul  habitually  cherishes  in  relation  to 
his  converts  at  Philippi.     This  is  expressed  vv.  3-1 1. 

Note  the  course  of  thought.  In  ver.  3  he  declares  his 
thankfulness  and  in  ver.  4  his  prayerfulness  on  their 
behalf;  and  he  puts  these  two  together,  without  as  yet 
saying  why  he  thanks  and  what  he  prays  for.  He  puts 
them  together,  because  he  would  mark  that  with  him 
these  are  not  two  separate  things ;  but  his  prayer  is 
thankful,  and  his  thankfulness  is  prayerful ;  and  then, 
having  so  much  to  be  thankful  for,  his  prayers  became, 
also,  joyful.  The  reason  why,  he  presently  explains 
more  particularly.  For,  ver.  5,  he  had  to  thank  God, 
joyfully,  for  their  fellowship  in  the  gospel  in  the  past ; 
and  then,  ver.  6,  knowing  to  what  this  pointed  forward, 
he  could  pray  joyfully — that  is,  with  joyful  expectation 
for  the  future.  And  thus  he  prepares  the  way  for  teUing 
what  special  things  he  was  led  to  pray  for  ;  but  first  he 


i<j 


20  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


interposes  vv.  7  and  8,  to  vindicate,  as  it  were,  the  right 
he  had  to  feel  so  warm  and  deep  an  interest  in  his 
Philippian  friends.  The  matter  of  his  prayer  follows  in 
vv.  9-1 1. 

First  he  thanks  God  for  grace   bestowed  upon  the 
Philippians.      As  often    as    he    remembered    them,   as 
often  as  he  lifted  up  his  heart  in  prayer  to  make  request 
for  them,  he  was  cheered  with  the  feeling  that  he  could 
make  request  joyfully — i.e.,  he  could  rejoice  over  mercies 
already    given.     We    know    that    the   Apostle,    in    his 
letters  to  the  Churches,  is  found  always  ready  to  evince 
the  same  spirit ;  he  is  prompt  to  pour  out  his  thanks 
for  anything  attained  by  those  Churches,  either  in  gifts 
or  grace.     We  find  it  so  in  his  letters  to  the  Churches 
of  Corinth  and  Ephesus  and  Colossae  and  Thessalonica. 
He  does  this,  always,  in  a  full  and  hearty  way.     He 
evidently  counted  it  both  duty  and  privilege    to    take 
note  of  what  God  had  wrought,  and  to  show  that  he 
prized  it.     Like  John,  he  had  no  greater  joy  than  to 
hear  that  his  children  walked  in  the  truth ;  and  he  gave 
the  glory  of  it  to  God  in  thanksgiving.    In  the  case  of  this 
Church,  however,  the  ground  of  thanksgiving  was  some- 
thing that  bound  them  to  Paul  in  a  peculiar  manner, 
and  touched  his  heart  with  a  glow  of  tenderer  love  and 
gladness.        It   was,  ver.   5,   ''their  fellowship    in    the 
gospel   (or  rather,   unto  the  gospel)  from  the  first  day 
until  now."     He  means,  that  from  their  first  acquaint- 
ance with  the    gospel,  the  Philippian  Christians    had, 
with  unusual  heartiness  and  sincerity,  committed  them- 


i.  3-1 1,]    PAULS  MIND  ABOUT  THE  PHILIPPIANS.         21 

selves  to  the  cause  of  the  gospel.     They  had  made  it 
their  own  cause.      They  had  embarked  in  it  as  a  fellow- 
ship to  which   they  gave  themselves    heart   and  soul. 
There  might  be  Churches,  more  distinguished  for  gifts 
than  that  of  Philippi  was,  where  less  of  this  magnani- 
mous spirit  appeared.     There  might  be  Churches,  where 
men  seemed  to  be  occupied  with  their  own  advantage 
by  the  gospel,  their  individual  and  separate  advantage, 
but  withheld  themselves  from  the  fellowship  unto  it, — 
did    not  readily  commit  themselves  to  it  and  to  each 
other,  as  embarking  wholly  and  for  ever  in  the  common 
cause.     This  misconception,  this  servility  of  spirit,  is 
but  too  easy.     You  may  have  whole  Churches,  in  which 
men  are  full  of  self-congratulation  about   attainments 
they  make  in  the  gospel,  and  gifts  they  receive  by  the 
gospel,  and  doctrines  they  build  up  about  it — but  the 
loving    "  fellowship    unto    it "  fails.     A  large   measure 
of  a    better  spirit  had  been  given  to  the   Philippians 
from  the  first.     They  were  a  part  of  those  Macedonian 
Churches,  who  "  first  gave  their  own  selves  "  to  the  Lord 
and  His  Apostles,  and  then  also  their  help  and  service. 
It  was  an  inward  fellowship  before  it  was  an  outward 
one.      They  first  gave  their  own  selves,  so  that  their 
hearts  were  mastered  by  the  desire  to  see  the  ends  of 
the  gospel  achieved,  and  then  came  service  and  sacrifice. 
Trials  and  losses  had  befallen  them  in  this  course  of 
service ;  but  still  they  are  found  caring  for  the  gospel, 
for  their  brethren  in  the  gospel,  for  their  father  in  the 
gospel,  for  the  cause  of  the  gospel.     This  fellowship — 


22  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

this  readiness  to  make  common  cause  with  the  gospel, 
out  and  out,  had  begun  at  the  first  day ;  and  after 
trouble  and  trial  it  continued  even  until  now. 

The  disposition  here  commended  has  its  importance, 
very  much  because  it  implies  so  just  a  conception  of  the 
genius  of  the  gospel,  and  so  hearty  a  consent  to  it. 
He  whose  Christianity  leads  him  to  band  himself  with 
his  fellow-Christians,  to  get  good  by  their  help,  and  to 
help  them  to  get  good,  and  along  with  them  to  do  good 
as  opportunity  arises,  is  a  man  who  believes  in  the  work 
of  the  gospel  as  a  vital  social  force ;  he  believes  that 
Christ  is  in  his  members ;  he  believes  that  there  are 
attainments  to  be  made,  victories  won,  benefits  laid 
hold  of  and  appropriated.  He  is  in  sympathy  with 
Christ,  for  he  is  attracted  by  the  expectation  of  great 
results  coming  in  the  line  of  the  gospel ;  and  he  is  one 
who  looks  not  merely  on  his  own  things,  but  rejoices  to 
feel  that  his  own  hope  is  bound  up  with  a  great  hope 
for  many  and  for  the  world.  Such  a  man  is  near  the 
heart  of  things.  He  has,  in  important  respects,  got 
the  right  notion  of  Christianity,  and  Christianity  has 
got  the  right  hold  of  him. 

Now  if  we  consider  that  the  Apostle  Paul,  "  the  slave 
of  Jesus  Christ,"  was  himself  a  marvellous  embodiment 
of  the  spirit  he  is  here  commending  to  the  Philippians, 
we  shall  easily  understand  with  what  satisfaction  he 
thought  upon  this  Church,  and  rejoiced  over  them,  and 
gave  thanks.  Was  there  ever  a  man  who,  more  than 
Paul,  evinced   *'  the  fellowship  of  the  gospel "  from  the 


i.  3-11.]    PAULS  MIND  ABOUT  THE  PIIILIPPIANS.         23 


first    hour    to    the    last  ?     Was  there  ever  one  whose 
personal  self  was  more  swallowed  up  and  lost,  in  his 
zeal  to  be  spent  for  the  cause, — doing  all  things  for  the 
gospel's  sake  that  he  might  have  part  therein  ?     Did 
ever  man,  more  than  he,  welcome  sufferings,  sacrifices, 
toils,  if  they  were   for  Christ,   for  the  gospel  ?     Was 
man  ever  possessed  more  absolutely  than   he   with   a 
sense  of  the  worthiness  of  the  gospel  to  be  proclaimed 
everywhere,   to  every  man — and  with  a  sense  of  the 
right  the  gospel  had  to  himself,  as  Jesus  Christ's  man, 
the  man  that  should  be  used  and  expended  on  nothing 
else   but  upholding  this   cause,   and    proclaiming    this 
message  to  all  kinds  of  sinners  ?     The  one  great  object 
with  him  was  that  Christ  should  be  magnified  in  him, 
whether  by  life  or  by  death  (ver.  20).    His  heart,  there- 
fore, grew  glad  and  thankful  over  a  Church  that  had  so 
much  of  this  same  spirit,  and,  for  one  thing,  showed 
this  by  cleaving  to  him  in  their  hearts  through  all  the 
vicissitudes  of  his  work,  and  following  him  everywhere 
with  their  sympathy  and  their  prayers.     Some  Churches 
were  so  much  occupied  with  themselves,  and   had   so 
little  understanding  of  him,  that  he  was  obliged  to  write 
to  them  at  large,  setting  forth  the  true  spirit  and  manner 
of  his  own  life  and  service ;  he  had,  as  it  were,  to  open 
their  eyes  by  force  to  see  him  as  he  was.    This  was  not 
needed  here :  the  Philippians  understood  him  already  : 
they  did  so,  because,  in  a  degree,  they  had  caught  the 
contagion  of  his  own  spirit.     They   had  given  them- 
selves,   in    their    measure,    in    a    fellowship     unto    the 


24  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


gospel,    from    the    first    day    until    now.       They    had 
claimed,  and  they  still  claimed,  to  have  a  share  in  all 
that  befell  the  gospel,  and  in  all  that  befell  the  Apostle. 
Paul  ascribed  all  this  to  God's  grace  in  them,  and 
thanked  God  for  it.     True,  indeed,  much  activity  about 
the   gospel,  and    much    that   looks  like  interest  in  its 
progress,  may  proceed   from   other    causes    besides    a 
living  fellowship  with  Jesus,  and  a  true  disposition  to 
forsake   all   for    Him.     The  outward  activity  may  be 
resorted  to  as  a  substitute  for  the  inward  life ;  or  it 
may  express  the  spirit  of  sectarian   selfishness.     But 
when  it  appears  as  a  consistent  interest  in  the  gospel, 
when  it  is  accompanied  by  the  tokens  of  frank  goodwill 
and  free  self-surrender  to  the  Church's  evangelical  life, 
when    it    endures  through  vicissitudes  of  time,  under 
trial,  persecution,  and    reproach,  it    must   arise,  in  the 
main,  from  a  real  persuasion  of  the  Divine  excellence 
and  power  of  the  gospel  and  the  Saviour.     Not  without 
the  grace  of  God  does  any  Church  manifest  this  spirit. 

Now  to  the  Apostle  who  had  this  cause  of  gladness 
in  the  past,  there  opened  (ver.  6)  a  gladdening  prospect 
for  the  future,  which  at  once  deepened  his  thankful- 
ness and  gave  expectancy  to  his  prayers.  "  Being 
confident  of  this  very  thing,  that  He  that  hath  begun  a 
good  work  in  you  will  perform  it  unto  the  day  of  Jesus 
Christ."  ''  Being  confident  of  this  very  thing "  is 
equivalent  to  "  Having  no  less  confidence  than  this  "  ; 
for  he  desires  to  express  that  his  confidence  is  emphatic 
and  great. 


I.  3-1 1.]    PAULS  MIND  ABOUT  THE  PHILIPPIANS.         25 


The  confidence  so  expressed  assumes  a  principle, 
and  makes  application  of  that  principle  to  the  Philippian 
saints. 

The  principle  is  that  the  work  of  saving  grace  clearly 
begun  by  the  Spirit  of  God  shall  not  be  destroyed  and 
come  to  nothing,  but  shall  be  carried  on  to  complete 
salvation.  This  principle  is  not  received  by  all  Chris- 
tians as  part  of  the  teaching  of  Scripture  ;  but  without 
entering  now  into  any  large  discussion,  it  may  be 
pointed  out  that  it  seems  to  be  recognised,  not  merely 
in  a  few,  but  in  many  passages  of  Holy  Writ.  Not  to 
recite  Old  Testament  indications,  we  have  our  Lord's 
word  (John  x.  28)  :  "  I  give  unto  them  eternal  life,  and 
they  shall  never  perish,  neither  shall  any  man  pluck 
them  out  of  My  hand."  And  there  is  hardly  an  Epistle 
of  our  Apostle  in  which  the  same  principle  is  not 
presented  to  us,  stated  in  express  terms,  or  assumed 
in  stating  other  doctrines,  and  applied  to  the  comfort 
of  behevers  (i  Thess.  v.  23,  24;  i  Cor.  i.  8;  Rom. 
viii.  30).  The  ultimate  salvation  of  those  in  whom  a 
good  work  is  begun,  is,  in  this  view,  conceived  to  be 
connected  with  the  stability  of  God's  purposes,  the 
efficacy  of  the  Son's  mediation,  the  permanence  and 
power  of  the  Holy  Spirit's  influence,  and  the  nature  of 
the  covenant  under  which  believers  are  placed.  And 
the  perseverance  thus  provided  for  is  supposed  to  be 
made  good  through  the  faith,  patience,  fear,  and  dili- 
gence of  those  who  persevere,  and  by  no  means  without 
these.     As  to  the  place  before  us,  whatever  exceptions 


26  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


and  whatever  distinctions  may  be  taken  on  the  subject, 
it  must  be  owned  that,  gladly  recognising  Christian 
character  and  attainment  as  a  fact,  he  finds  therein  a 
warrant  for  emphatic  confidence  about  the  future,  even 
to  the  day  of  Christ. 

As  to  the  application  of  this  principle  to  the  Philip- 
pians,  the  method  in  which  the  Apostle  proceeds  is 
plain.  He  certainly  does  not  speak  as  by  immediate 
insight  into  Divine  counsels  about  the  Philippians.  He 
is  directed  to  utter  a  conclusion  at  which  he  had  arrived 
by  a  process  which  he  explains.  From  the  evidence  of 
the  reality  of  their  Christian  calling,  he  drew  the  con- 
clusion that  Christ  was  at  work  in  them,  and  the  further 
conclusion  that  this  work  would  be  completed.  It  may 
be  asked  how  so  confident  an  application  of  the  prin- 
ciple now  in  view  could  be  reached  on  these  terms  ? 
How  could  the  Apostle  be  sure  enough  of  the  inward 
state  of  his  Philippian  friends,  to  enable  him  to  reason 
on  it,  as  here  he  seems  to  do  ?  In  answer,  we  grant 
it  to  be  impossible  for  any  one,  without  immediate 
revelation  on  the  point,  to  reach  absolute  assurance 
about  the  spiritual  state  of  other  people.  And  there- 
fore we  are  to  keep  in  view,  what  has  already  been 
suggested,  that  the  Apostle,  speaking  to  "saints," 
really  remits  to  themselves  and  to  their  Lord  the  final 
question  as  to  the  reahty  of  that  apparent  saintship. 
But  then,  we  are  taught  by  the  Apostle's  example  that 
where  ordinary  tokens,  and  especially  where  more  than 
ordinary  tokens  of  Christian  character  appear,  we  are 


i.  3-11.]    PAULS  MIND  ABOUT  THE  PHILIPPIANS.         27 


frankly  and  gladly  to  give  effect  to  those  signs  in  our 
practical  judgments.  There  may  be  an  error,  no  doubt 
there  is,  in  unbounded  charity  ;  but  there  is  error  also 
when  we  make  a  grudging  estimate  of  Christian  brethren  ; 
when,  on  the  ground  of  some  failing,  we  allow  suspicion 
to  obliterate  the  impressions  which  their  Christian  faith 
and  service  might  fairly  have  made  upon  us.  We  are 
to  cherish  the  thought  that  a  wonderful  future  is  before 
those  in  whom  Christ  is  carrying  on  His  work  of  grace  ; 
and  we  are  to  make  a  loving  application  of  that  hope 
in  the  case  of  those  whose  Christian  dispositions  have 
become  specially  manifest  to  us  in  the  intercourse  of 
Christian  friendship. 

However,  the  Apostle  felt  that  he  had  a  special  right 
to  feel  thus  in  reference  to  the  Philippians — more, 
perhaps,  than  in  regard  to  others ;  and  instead  of  going 
on  at  once  to  specify  the  objects  of  his  prayers  for  them, 
he  interposes  a  vindication,  as  it  were,  of  the  right  he 
claimed  (ver.  7)  :  "  Even  as  it  is  meet  for  me  to  be  thus 
minded  with  respect  to  all  of  you,  because  I  have  you 
in  my  heart,  you  who  are  all  partakers  of  my  grace, 
not  only  in  the  defence  and  confirmation  of  the  gospel, 
but  also  in  my  bonds."  As  if  he  would  say, — There 
are  special  ties  between  us,  which  justify  on  my 
part  special  tenderness  and  vigilance  of  appreciation 
and  approbation,  when  I  think  of  you.  A  father  has  a 
special  right  to  take  note  of  what  is  hopeful  in  his  son, 
and  to  dwell  with  satisfaction  on  his  virtues  and  his 
promise;    and    friends    who    have    toiled  and   suffered 


28  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


together  have  a  special  right  to  cherish  a  deep  trust  in 
one  another's  well-tried  fidelity  and  nobleness.  Let 
strangers,  in  such  cases,  set,  if  they  will,  a  slight  value 
on  characters  which  they  hardly  know  ;  but  let  them 
not  dispute  the  right  which  love  has  to  scrutinise  with 
delight  the  nobler  qualities  of  those  who  are  beloved. 

The  Philippians  were  sharers  of  Paul's  grace,  as 
sharing  his  enthusiasm  for  the  successful  advocacy 
and  confirmation  of  the  gospel.  So  they  had  their 
share  in  the  grace  that  was  so  mighty  in  him.  But 
besides  that,  the  Apostle's  heart  had  been  cheered  and 
warmed  by  the  manifestation  of  their  sympathy,  their 
loving  thoughtfulness  in  reference  to  his  bonds.  So  he 
joyfully  owned  them  as  partakers  in  spirit  in  those 
bonds,  and  in  the  grace  by  which  he  endured  them. 
They  remembered  him  in  his  bonds,  "as  bound  with 
him."  Every  way  their  fellowship  with  him  expressed 
itself  as  full  and  true.  No  jarring  element  broke  in  to 
mar  the  happy  sense  of  this.  He  could  feel  that 
though  far  away  their  hearts  beat  pulse  for  pulse  with 
his,  partakers  not  only  of  his  toil  but  of  his  bonds.  So 
he  *'  had  them  in  his  heart "  :  his  heart  embraced  them 
with  no  common  warmth  and  yielded  to  them  no 
common  friendship.  And  what  then  ?  Why  then  "it  is 
meet  that  I  should  be  thus  minded,"  "  should  use  love's 
happy  right  to  think  very  well  of  you,  and  should  let 
the  evidence  of  your  Christian  feeling  come  home  to 
my  heart,  warm  and  glowing."  It  was  meet  that  Paul 
should  joyfully  repute   them  to  be  sincere — to  be  men 


i.  3-11.1     PAULS  MIND  ABOUT  THE  PIIIUPPIANS.         29 

cleaving  to  the  gospel  in  a  genuine  love  of  it.  It  was 
meet  that  he  should  thank  God  in  their  behalf,  seeing 
these  happy  attainments  of  theirs  were  so  truly  a 
concern  of  his.  It  was  meet  he  should  pray  for  them 
with  joyful  importunity,  counting  their  growth  in  grace 
to  be  a  benefit  also  to  himself. 

It  would  be  a  helpful  thing  if  Christian  friends 
cherished,  and  if  they  sometimes  expressed,  warm  hopes 
and  expectations  in  behalf  of  one  another.  Only, 
let  this  be  the  outcome  of  truly  spiritual  affection. 
Paul  was  persuaded  that  his  feelings  arose  from  no 
mere  human  impulse.  The  grace  of  God  it  was  which 
had  given  the  Philippians  this  place  in  his  heart.  God 
was  his  record  that  his  longing  after  them  was  great, 
and  also  that  it  was  in  the  mercies  of  Christ.  He 
loved  them  as  a  man  in  Christ,  and  with  Christlike 
affections.  Otherwise,  words  like  these  assume  a  canting 
character,  and  are  unedifying. 

Now  at  last  comes  the  tenor  of  his  prayer  (ver.  9)  : 
"  That  your  love  may  abound  yet  more  and  more  in 
knowledge  and  all  discernment ;  so  that  ye  may  approve 
the  things  that  are  excellent,"  and  so  on. 

Let  this  first  be  noted,  that  it  is  a  prayer  for  growth. 
All  that  grace  has  wrought  in  the  Philippian  believers, 
everything  in  their  state  that  filled  his  heart  with 
thankfulness,  he  regards  as  the  beginning  of  something 
better  still.  For  this  he  longs  ;  and  therefore  his  heart 
is  set  on  progress.  So  we  find  it  in  all  his  Epistles. 
**As  ye  have  received  how  ye  ought  to  walk  and  to 


30  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

please  God — so  abound  more"  (i  Thess.  iv.  i).  This 
is  a  very  familiar  thought,  yet  let  us  spend  a  sentence 
or  two  upon  it.  The  spiritual  prosperity  of  believers 
should  be  measured  not  so  much  by  the  point  they  have 
reached,  but  by  the  fact  and  measure  of  the  progress 
they  are  making.  Progress  in  likeness  to  Christ, 
progress  in  following  Him  :  progress  in  understanding 
His  mind  and  learning  His  lessons ;  progress  ever 
from  the  performance  and  the  failures  of  yesterday  to 
the  new  discipline  of  to-day, — this  is  Paul's  Christianity. 
In  this  world  our  condition  is  such  that  the  business 
of  every  believer  is  to  go  forward.  There  is  room  for 
it,  need  of  it,  call  to  it,  blessedness  in  it.  For  any 
Christian,  at  any  stage  of  attainment,  to  presume  to 
stand  still,  is  perilous  and  sinful.  A  beginner  that 
is  pressing  forward  is  a  happier  and  a  more  helpful 
Christian  than  he  is  who  has  come  to  a  stand,  though 
the  latter  may  seem  to  be  on  the  borders  of  the  land  of 
Beulah.  The  first  may  have  his  life  marred  by  much 
darkness  and  many  mistakes  ;  but  the  second  is  for  the 
present  practically  denying  the  Christian  truth  and  the 
Christian  call,  as  these  bear  on  himself.  Therefore 
the  Apostle  is  bent  upon  progress.  And  here  we  have 
his  account  of  that  which  suggested  itself  to  him  as  the 
best  kind  of  progress  for  these  converts  of  his. 

The  Ufe  of  their  souls,  as  he  conceived  it,  depended 
on  the  operation  of  one  great  principle,  and  he  prays 
for  the  increase  of  that  in  strength  and  efficacy.  He 
desires   that   their  love   may  abound  more  and  more. 


'•  3 


.ii.J     PAULS  MIND  ABOUT  THE  PIIILIPPIANS.         31 


He  was  glad  to  think  they  had  shown,  all  along,  a 
loving  Christian  spirit.  He  wished  it  to  grow  to  its 
proper  strength  and  nobleness. 

No  one  doubts  that,  according  to  the  Scriptures, 
love  is  the  practical  principle  by  which  the  fruits  of 
faith  are  brought  forth.  The  Christian  character 
peculiarly  consists  in  a  Christlike  love.  The  sum  of 
the  law  from  which  we  fell  is,  Thou  shalt  love  ;  and, 
being  redeemed  in  Christ,  we  find  the  end  of  the  com- 
mandment to  be  love,  out  of  a  pure  heart,  and  a  good 
conscience,  and  faith  unfeigned.  Redemption  itself  is 
a  process  of  love,  setting  forth  from  heaven  to  earth  to 
create  and  kindle  love,  and  make  it  triumph  in  human 
hearts  and  lives.  Every  one  that  loveth  is  born  of 
God  and  knoweth  God.  No  point  is  so  well  settled. 
Nobody  doubts  it. 

Yet,  alas !  how  many  of  us  are  truly  aware  of  the 
great  meaning  which  apostolic  words,  which  Christ's 
words,  carry,  when  this  is  spoken  of  ?  or  how^  shall  it 
be  made  inwardly  and  vividly  present  to  us?  In  the 
heart  of  Christ,  who  loved  us  and  gave  Himself  for  us, 
was  a  great  purpose  to  awaken  in  human  hearts  a  deep 
and  strong  affection,  kindred  to  His  own — true,  tender, 
steadfast,  all-prevailing,  all-transforming.  Apostles, 
catching  the  fire  in  their  degree,  were  full  of  the 
wonder  of  it,  of  the  glad  surprise  and  yet  the  sober 
reality  of  it ;  and  they  carried  about  the  gospel  every- 
where, looking  to  see  men  thrill  into  this  new  life,  and 
become  instances  of  its  strength  and   gladness.     And 


32  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PmUPPIANS. 


we?  Let  each  man  answer  for  himself.  He  is  a  happy 
man  who  can  answer  clearly.  What  is  it  to  have  love 
for  the  inspiration  of  the  heart  and  the  Hfe  :  love  sub- 
merging the  lower  cravings,  love  ennobling  and  ex- 
panding all  that  is  best  and  highest,  love  consecrating 
life  into  a  glad  and  endless  offering  ?  Which  of  us  has 
that  within  him  which  could  break  into  a  song,  like  the 
thirteenth  chapter  of  Corinthians,  rejoicing  in  the  good- 
ness and  nobleness  of  love  ?  "  That  your  love  may 
abound."  In  our  tongue  it  is  but  one  syllable.  So 
much  the  easier  for  our  perversity  to  slide  over  the 
meaning  as  we  read.  But  all  our  earthly  life  is  too 
short  a  space  for  learning  how  deep  and  how  pertinent 
to  ourselves  this  business  of  love  is. 

No  doubt,  the  kindness  the  Phihppians  had  shown 
to  the  Apostle,  of  which  he  had  been  speaking, 
naturally  prepares  the  way  for  speaking  of  their  love, 
as  the  verse  before  us  does.  But  we  are  not  to  take 
the  word  as  referring  only  to  the  love  they  might  bear 
to  other  believers,  or,  in  particular,  to  the  Apostle. 
That  is  in  the  Apostle's  mind;  but  his  reference  is 
wider,  namely,  to  love  as  a  principle  which  operates 
universally — which  first  holds  lowly  fellowship  with  the 
love  of  God,  and  then  also  flows  out  in  Christian  affec- 
tion towards  men.  The  Apostle  does  not  distinguish 
these,  because  he  will  not  have  us  to  separate  them. 
The  believer  has  been  brought  back  in  love  to  God,  and 
having  his  life  quickened  from  that  source  he  loves 
men.     The  manward  aspect  of  it  is  made  prominent  in 


i.  3-1 1.]     PAUL'S  MIND  ABOUT  THE  PHILIPPIANS.         33 


the  Bible  for  this  reason,  that  in  love  towards  men  the 
exercise  of  this  affection  finds  the  most  various  scope, 
and  in  this  way  also  it  is  most  practically  tested.  The 
Apostle  would  not  grant  to  any  of  us  that  our  pro- 
fession of  love  to  God  could  be  genuine,  if  love  did 
not  exert  itself  towards  men.  Rut  neither  would  he 
suffer  it  to  be  restricted  in  the  other  direction.  In  the 
present  case  he  gladly  owned  the  love  which  his 
Philippian  friends  bore  to  himself.  But  he  sees  in 
this  the  existence  of  a  principle  which  may  signalise  its 
energy  in  all  directions,  and  is  able  to  bear  all  kinds  of 
good  fruit.  Therefore  his  prayer  fixes  on  this,  "  that 
your  love  may  abound." 

Now  here  we  must  look  narrowly  into  the  drift  of 
the  prayer.  For  the  Apostle  desires  that  love  may 
abound  and  work  in  a  certain  manner,  and  if  it  shall, 
he  assures  himself  of  excellent  effects  to  follow. 
Perhaps  we  may  best  see  the  reason  which  guided  his 
prayer,  if  we  begin  with  the  result  or  achievement  he 
aimed  at  for  his  Philippian  friends.  If  we  can  under- 
stand that,  we  may  the  better  understand  the  road  by 
which  he  hoped  they  might  be  carried  forward  to  it. 

The  result  aimed  at  is  this  (vv.  lO,  ii):  ''that  ye 
may  be  sincere  and  without  offence  until  the  day  of 
Christ ;  being  filled  with  the  fruits  of  righteousness, 
which  are  by  Jesus  Christ,  to  the  glory  and  praise  of 
God."  The  last  end  is  the  glory  and  praise  of  God. 
This,  let  us  be  assured,  is  no  mere  phrase  with  the 
Apostle.    All  these  things  are  real  and  vivid  to  him.     If 

3 


34  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

he  were  to  come  among  us,  knowing  us  to  be  professed 
believers,  then,  strange  as  some  of  us  may  think  it,  he 
would  actually  expect  that  a  great  degree  of  praise  and 
glory  to  God  should  accrue  out  of  our  lives.  The  time 
he  fixes  on  for  the  manifestation  of  this,  the  time  when 
it  should  be  seen  how  this  has  come  to  pass,  is  the 
day  of  Christ.  That  great  day  of  revealing  shall 
witness,  in  particular,  the  consummate  glory  of  Christ's 
salvation  in  His  redeemed.  And  he  prays  that  unto 
that  day  and  at  that  day  they  may  be  sincere,  without 
offence,  filled  with  fruits  of  righteousness. 

First,  sincere :  that  signifies  simplicity  of  purpose, 
and  singleness  of  heart  in  following  out  that  purpose. 
Sincere  Christians  cherish  in  their  hearts  no  views,  no 
principles,  adverse  to  the  Christian  calling.  The  test  of 
this  sincerity  is  that  a  man  shall  be  honestly  willing  to 
let  light  shine  through  him,  to  evince  the  true  character 
of  his  principles  and  motives.  Such  a  man  is  on  the 
road  to  the  final,  victorious,  and  eternal  sincerity.  For 
the  present  there  may  be  within  him  too  much  of  that 
which  hinders  him,  and  mars  his  life.  But  if  he  is  set 
on  expelling  this,  and  welcomes  the  light  which  exposes 
it,  in  order  that  he  may  expel  it,  then  he  has  a  real, 
present  sincerity,  and  his  course  is  brightening  towards 
the  perfect  day. 

Second^  without  offence.  This  is  the  character  of 
the  man  who  walks  without  stumbling.  For  there  are 
obstacles  in  the  way,  and  they  are  often  unexpected. 
Grant  a  man  to  be  in  a  measure  sincere^the  call  of  the 


i.  3-11.]     PAULS  MIND  ABOUT  THE  PHILIPPIANS.         35 

gospel  has  really  won  his  heart.     Yet  as  he  goes,  there 
fall  in  trials,  temptations,  difficulties,  that  seem  to  come 
upon  him  from  without,  as  it  were,  and  he  stumbles  : 
he  fails  to  preserve  the  uprightness  of  his  life,  and  to 
keep  his  eye  fixed  with  due  steadiness  on  the  end  of 
his  faith.     Suddenly,   before  he   is  well   aware,   he  is 
almost  down.     So  he  brings  confusion  into  his  mind, 
and  guilt  upon  his  conscience  ;  and  in  his  bewilderment 
he  is  too  likely  to  make  worse  stumbles  ere  long.     He 
who  would   be  a   prosperous  Christian    has   not  only 
to  watch  against  duplicity  in  the  heart :  he  must  give 
diligence  also  to  deal  wisely  with  the  various  outward 
influences  which  strike  into  our  lives,  which  seem  often 
to  do   so   cruelly   and   unreasonably,   and  which  wear 
some  false  guise  that  we  had  not  foreseen.     Paul  knew 
this  in  his  own   case ;   and  therefore  he  *'  studied   to 
keep   a   conscience  void   of  offence."     We  may  have 
wisdom  enough  for  our  own  practice  as  to  this,  if  we 
know  where  to  go  for  it. 

Third,  filled  with  fruits  of  righteousness — which  is 
the  positive  result,  associated  with  the  absence  of  guile 
and  the  freedom  from  stumbling.  A  tree  that  bears 
any  fruit  is  alive.  But  one  that  is  filled  with  fruit 
glorifies  the  gardener's  care.  "  Herein  is  My  Father 
glorified,  that  ye  bear  much  fruit;  so  shall  ye  be  My 
disciples."  Distinct  and  manifold  acts  of  faith  and 
patience  are  the  proper  testimonies  of  the  soul  that  is 
sincere  and  without  offence. 

This  is  the  line  of  things  which  the  Apostle  desires 


36  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


to  see  running  its  course  towards  the  day  of  Christ. 
Now  let  us  ask,  In  what  circumstances  is  the  believer 
placed  for  whom  Paul  desires  it  ? 

He  is  placed   in    a   world  that    is   full    of  adverse 
influences,  and  is  apt  to  stir  adverse  forces  in  his  own 
heart.     If  he  allows  these  influences  to  have  their  way 
— if  he  yields  to  the   tendencies  that  operate  around 
him,  he  will  be  carried  off  in  a  direction  quite  different 
from  that  which  Paul  contemplates.     Instead  of  sincerity, 
there  will  be  the  tainted,  corrupt,  divided  heart ;  instead 
of  freedom  from  offence,  there  will  be  many  a  fall,  or 
even  a  complete  forsaking  of  the  way  ;  instead  of  fruits 
of  righteousness  filling  the    life,   there  will    be   ''wild 
grapes."      On    the   other  hand,  if,   in   spite   of  these 
influences,  the  Christian  is  enabled  to  hold  his  course, , 
then  the  discipline  of  conflict  and  trial  will"  prove  full  of 
blessing.     Here  also  shall  the  promise  be  fulfilled  that 
all  things  work  together  for  good  to  them  that  love  God. 
Strong  temptations  are  not  overcome  without  sorrow 
and  pain  ;  but  being  overcome,  they  turn  out  ministers 
of    good.       In    this    experience    sincerity    clears    and 
deepens  ;  and  the  bearing  of  the  Christian  acquires  a 
firmness  and  directness  not  otherwise  attainable  ;  and 
the  fruits  of  righteousness  acquire  a  flavour  which  no 
other  climate  could  have  developed  so  well.     This  hard 
road  turns  out  to  be  the  best  road  towards  the  day  of 
'Christ. 

The  effect,  then,  of  the  circumstances  in  which  the 
believer  is  thus  placed  will  be  according  to  the  way  in 


i.  3-1  i.j    PAUL'S  MIND  ABOUT  THE  PHILIPPIANS.         37 

which  he  deals  with  them.  But  plainly,  to  deal  rightly 
with  them,  implies  a  constant  effort  of  judging  the 
things  within  him  and  without  him,  the  world  within 
and  the  world  without,  that  he  may  "approve  what  is 
more  excellent " — that  he  may  choose  the  good  and  re- 
fuse the  evil.  Discerning,  distinguishing,  as  to  opinions, 
influences,  feelings,  habits,  courses  of  conduct,  and  so 
forth,  so  as  to  separate  right  and  wrong,  spiritual  and 
carnal,  true  and  false,  must  be  the  work  in  hand.  There 
must  be  the  prevailing  practical  mind  to  elect  and  to 
abide  by  the  proper  objects  of  choice,  to  cleave  to  the 
one  and  to  put  away  the  other. 

So  we  can  understand  very  well,  if  the  Philippians 
were  to  be  sincere,  without  oftence,  filled  with  fruits  of 
righteousness,  that  they  must,  and  ever  more  and  more 
searchingly  and  successfully,  ''approve  the  things  that 
are  more  excellent."     The  phrase  is  also  rendered  "  try 
the   things  which  differ "  ;  for  the  expression  implies 
both.     It  implies  such  a  putting  to  proof  of  that  which 
is  presented  to  us,  as  to  make  just  distinctions  and  give 
to  each  its  proper  place — silver  on  the  one  side,  dross 
on  the  other.     What  is  the  whole  life  and  business  of 
the    Phihppians,  of  any  Christians,  as  Christians,  but 
that  of  following   out    perpetually  a  choice,  on  given 
principles,  among  the  multitude  of  objects  that  claim 
their  regard  ?     The  fundamental  choice,  arrived  at  in 
believing,  has    to   be   reiterated  continually,  in  a  just 
application  of  it  to  a  world  of  varying  and  sometimes 
perplexing  cases. 


J 


8  THE  EPISTLE    TO   THE  PIJILIPPIANS. 


When  we  have  all  this  in  view  it  is  easy  to  under- 
stand the  scope  of  the  Apostle's  prayer  about  the 
growth  and  education  of  their  love.  Out  of  love  this 
needed  discrhnination  must  come.     For 

1.  No  practical  discriminations  or  determinations  are 
of  any  worth  in  God's  sight  except  as  they  are  ani- 
mated by  love,  and,  indeed,  determined  by  it.  If  a 
Christian  should  choose  anything,  or  reject  anything, 
yet  not  in  love,  his  choice  as  to  the  matter  of  fact  may 
be  right,  but  for  all  that  the  man  himself  is  wrong. 

2.  Love  alone  will  practically  carry  through  such 
habitual  discrimination,  such  faithful  and  patient  choice. 
Love  becomes  the  new  instinct  which  gives  life,  spring, 
and  promptitude  to  the  process.  When  this  fails,  the 
life  of  approving  the  things  that  are  more  excellent 
will  fail ;  the  task  will  be  repudiated  as  a  burden  that 
cannot  be  endured.  It  may  still  be  professed,  but  it 
must  inwardly  die. 

3.  Nothing  but  love  can  enable  us  to  see  and  to  affirm 
the  true  distinctions.  Under  the  influence  of  that 
pure  love  (that  arises  in  the  heart  which  God's  love 
has  won  and  quickened)  the  things  which  differ  are 
truly  seen.  So,  and  only  so,  we  shall  make  distinctions 
according  to  the  real  differences  as  these  appear  in 
God's  sight.     Let    us  consider  this  a  little. 

Evidently  among  the  things  that  differ  there  are 
some  whose  characteristics  are  so  plainly  written  in 
conscience  or  in  Scripture,  that  to  determine  what 
should  be  said  of  them  is  matter  of  no  difficulty  at  all. 


1.  3-11. J    PAULS  MIND  ABOUT  THE  PHILIPPIANS.         39 


It  is  no  matter  of  difficulty  to  decide  that  murder  and 
theft  are  wrong,  or  that  meekness,  benevolence,  justice 
are  right.  A  man  who  has  never  been  awakened  to 
spiritual  life,  or  a  Christian  whose  love  has  decayed, 
can  make  determinations  about  such  things,  and  can 
be  sure,  as  he  does  so,  that  as  to  the  thing  itself  he 
is  judging  right.  Yet  in  this  case  there  is  no  just 
apprehension  of  the  real  difference  in  God's  sight  of 
the  things  that  differ,  nor  a  right  mind  and  heart  to 
choose  or  to  reject  so  as  to  be  in  harmony  with  God's 
judgment. 

And  if  so,  then  in  that  large  class  of  cases  where' 
there  is  room  for  some  degree  of  doubt  or  diversity, 
where  some  mist  obscures  the  view,  so  that  it  is  not 
plain  at  once  into  what  class  things  should  be  reckoned 
— in  cases  where  we  are  not  driven  to  a  decision  by  a 
blaze  of  light  from  Scripture  or  conscience — in  such 
cases  we  need  the  impulse  of  the  love  which  cleaves  to 
God,  which  delights  in  righteousness,  which  gives  to 
others,  even  to  the  undeserving,  the  brother's  place  in 
the  heart.  Without  this  there  can  be  no  detection  of 
the  real  difference,  and  no  assurance  of  the  rectitude 
of  the  discrimination  we  make. 

Now  it  is  in  such  matters  that  the  especial  proof  and 
exercise  of  religious  life  goes  on.  Here,  for  example, 
Lot  failed.  The  beauty  of  the  fair  and  prosperous 
valley  so  filled  his  soul  with  admiration  and  desire,  that 
it  chilled  and  all  but  killed  the  affections  that  should 
have  steadied  and  raised  his  mind.     Had  the  love  of 


40  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

the  eternal  and  supreme  maintained  its  power,  then  in 
that  day  when  God  on  the  one  hand  and  Lot  on  the 
other  looked  down  on  the  plain,  they  would  have  seen 
the  same  sight  and  judged  it  with  the  same  mind. 
But  it  was  otherwise.  So  the  Lord  lifted  up  His  eyes 
and  saw  that  the  men  of  Sodom  were  wicked  and 
sinners  before  the  Lord  exceedingly  ;  and  Lot  lifted  up 
his  eyes  and  saw  only  that  the  plain  was  well  watered 
everywhere,  as  the  garden  of  the  Lord,  as  the  land  of 

Egypt- 

But  the  love  of  which  the  Apostle  speaks  is  the 
breath  of  the  upper  world  and  of  the  new  Hfe.  It 
cleaves  to  God,  it  embraces  the  things  which  God  loves, 
it  enters  into  the  views  which  God  reveals, — and  it 
takes  the  right  view  of  men,  and  of  men's  interest  and 
welfare.  The  man  that  has  it,  or  has  known  it,  is 
therein  aware  of  what  is  most  material.  He  has  a 
notion  of  the  conduct  that  is  congruous  to  love's  nature. 
What  love  knows,  it  is  the  nature  of  love  to  practise, 
for  it  knows  lovingly  ;  and  at  every  step  the  practice 
confirms,  establishes,  and  enlarges  the  knowledge.  So 
the  genuine  growth  of  love  is  a  growth  in  knowledge 
(ver.  9) — the  word  impHes  the  kind  of  knowledge  that 
goes  with  intently  looking  into  things :  love,  as  it 
grows,  becomes  more  quick  to  see  and  mark  how 
things  really  are  when  tried  by  the  true  standard. 
Conversing  practically  with  the  mind  of  God  in  the 
practice  of  life,  love  incorporates  that  mind  and  judges 
in    the   light   of  it.      This  prepares  a  man  to  detect 


i.  3-1 1.]     PAULS  MIND  ABOUT  THE  PHILIPPIANS.        41 


the  false  and  counterfeit,  and  to  try  the  things  that 
differ. 

Not  only  in  knowledge  shall  love  grow,  but  "in  all 
discernment,"  or  perception,  as  it  might  be  rendered. 
There  may  be  instances  in  which,  with  our  best 
wisdom,  we  find  it  hard  to  disentangle  clear  principles, 
or  state  plain  grounds  which  rule  the  case ;  yet  love, 
growing  and  exercised,  has  its  percipiency  :  it  has  that 
accomplished  tact,  that  quick  experienced  taste,  that 
fine  sensibility  to  what  befriends  and  what  opposes 
truth  and  right,  which  will  lead  to  right  distinctions 
in  practice.  So  you  discriminate  by  the  sense  of  taste 
things  that  differ,  tliough  you  can  give  no  reason  to 
another,  but  can  say  only,  **  I  perceive  it."  In  this 
sense  ''  he  that  is  spiritual  judgeth  all  things." 

For  all  this  the  aid  of  the  Holy  Spirit  is  held  out 
to  us,  as  we  may  see  in  i  John  ii.  He  makes  love 
to  grow,  and  under  that  master  influence  unfolds  the 
needed  wisdom  also.  So  comes  the  wisdom  "  from 
above,  which  is  first  pure,  then  peaceable,  gentle,  and 
easy  to  be  entreated,  full  of  mercy  and  of  good  fruits, 
without  partiality  and  without  hypocrisy"  (James  iii.  17). 
It  is  hidden  from  many  wise  and  prudent,  but  God  has 
often  revealed  it  unto  babes. 


HOW  THE  PHILIPPIANS  SHOULD   THINK  OF 

PAUL  AT  ROME. 


"Now  I  would  have  you  know,  brethren,  that  the  things  which 
happened  unto  me  have  fallen  out  rather  unto  the  progress  of  the 
gospel;  so  that  my  bonds  became  manifest  in  Christ  throughout  the 
whole  praetorian  guard,  and  to  all  the  rest;  and  that  most  of  the 
brethren  in  the  Lord,  being  confident  through  my  bonds,  are  more 
abundantly  bold  to  speak  the  word  of  God  without  fear.  Some 
indeed  preach  Christ  even  of  envy  and  strife ;  and  some  also  of  good 
will :  the  one  do  it  of  love,  knowing  that  I  am  set  for  the  defence  of 
the  gospel :  but  the  other  proclaim  Christ  of  faction,  not  sincerely, 
thinking  to  raise  up  affliction  for  me  in  my  bonds.  What  then  ?  only 
that  in  every  way,  whether  in  pretence  or  in  truth,  Christ  is  proclaimed  ; 
and  therein  I  rejoice,  yea,  and  will  rejoice.  For  I  know  that  this 
shall  turn  to  my  salvation,  through  your  supplication  and  the  supply 
of  the  Spirit  of  Jesus  Christ,  according  to  my  earnest  expectation  and 
hope,  that  in  nothing  shall  I  be  put  to  shame,  but  that  with  all 
boldness,  as  always,  so  now  also  Christ  shall  be  magnified  in  my 
body,  whether  by  life,  or  by  death." — Phil.  i.  12-20  (R.V.). 


44 


CHAPTER    III. 

IIOJV   THE  PHIUPPIANS  SHOULD    THINK  OF  PAUL 

AT  ROME. 

HAVING  poured  out  his  feelings  about  those  dear 
friends  and  children  in  the  Lord  at  Philippi,  the 
Apostle  recognises  corresponding  feelings  on  their  part 
towards  him.  These  must  naturally  be  feelings  of 
anxiety  to  know  how  it  was  with  him  in  body  and 
spirit,  and  how  far  he  had  been  protected  and  sustained 
amid  the  dangers  and  sorrows  of  a  prisoner's  lot.  On 
this  then  he  is  glad  to  be  able  to  give  them  good 
tidings.  He  can  do  so,  because  he  is  in  the  hands 
of  a  wonder-working  Lord,  who  turns  the  shadow  of 
death  into  the  morning.  Hence  his  history  as  well  as 
theirs  (ver.  ii)  is  moving  towards  the  glory  and  praise 
of  God. 

The  Apostle's  affairs  had  seemed  to  be  full  of  trial  to 
himself,  all  the  more  that  they  bore  so  discouraging  an 
aspect  towards  the  cause  to  which  he  was  devoted. 
He  had  been  for  years  a  prisoner.  The  work  of 
preaching  to  the  Gentiles  the  unsearchable  riches  of 
Chirist  had  been  stopped,  except  as  the  narrow  oppor- 
tu.nities  of  a  prisoner's  life  offered  scant  outlets  for  it. 

45 


46  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


He  had,  no  doubt,  his  own  share  of  experiences  tending 
to  depress  and  embitter  :  for  in  his  day  philanthropy 
had  not  yet  done  much  to  secure  good   treatment  for 
men  situated  as  he  was.     Still  more  depressing  to  an 
eager  soul  was  the  discipline  of  delay  :  the  slow,  mono- 
tonous months  passing  on,  consuming  the  remainder  of 
his  life,  while  the  great  harvest  he  longed  to  reap  lay 
outside  uncared  for,  with   few  to  bring  it  in.     Mean- 
while even  the  work  done  in  Christ's  name  was  largely 
taking  a  wrong  direction  :  those  who  under  the  Christian 
name  preached  another  gospel,  and  perverted  the  gospel 
of  Christ,  had  a  freer  hand  to  do  their  work.     Paul,  at 
least,   had   no    longer   the   power  to  cross  their  path. 
Ground  on  which  he  might  have  worked,  minds  which 
he  might  have  approached,  seemed  to  be  falling  under 
their  perverting  influence.     All  this  seemed  adverse — 
adverse  to  Paul,  and  adverse  to  the  cause  for  which  he 
lived — fitted  therefore    to  awaken  legitimate  concern  : 
fitted  to  raise  the  question  why  God's  providence  should 
thus  depress  the  heart  and  waste  the  Hfe  of  an  agent  so 
carefully  prepared  and  so  incomparably  efficient. 

Most  likely  these  things  had  tried  the  faith  of  Paul 
himself,  and  they  might  distress  and  perplex  his  loving 
friends  at  Philippi.  It  was  right  to  feel  that  these 
providences  were  trying ;  but  one  might  be  tempted 
also  to  conclude  that  they  were  in  every  sense  to  be 
lamented.  So  much  the  better  it  was,  therefore,  that 
the  Apostle  could  testify  how  here  also  all  things 
were  working  for  good,  and  in  particular  were  turning 


i.  12-20.]      now  TO    THINK   OF  PAUL   AT  ROME.  47 


out  to  be  for  the  furtherance  of  the  gospel.      This  was 
taking  place  in  two  ways  at  least. 

First,  Paul's  imprisonment  had  become  the  means 
of  bringing  to  the  knowledge  of  the  gospel  many  who 
were  not  likely  ever  to  hear  of  it  in  any  other  way  ; 
for  his  bonds  had  become  manifest  in  Christ  in  the 
Praetorium,  and  in  all  other  places.  The  precise  mean- 
ing of  the  several  words  here  used  has  become  matter 
of  discussion ;  but  the  general  result  is  much  the  same 
whatever  view  is  taken  of  the  matters  debated.  The 
word  translated  *'  palace "  in  the  Authorised  Version 
(Marg.  Caesar's  Court)  may  perhaps  refer  to  the  quarters 
of  the  guard,  in  the  immediate  neighbourhood  of  the 
palace.  Prisoners  whose  cases  were  in  a  special 
manner  reserved  to  the  Emperor  were  sometimes 
confined  there.  And  Paul,  whether  actually  confined 
there  or  not,  must  have  come  into  contact  with  the  troops 
stationed  there,  for  we  know  he  had  been  delivered  to 
the  captain  of  the  guard  (Acts  xxviii.  16*).  Then  the 
*'all  others"  (Marg.  of  A.V.)  may  probably  mean  the 
rest  of  the  Emperor's  household  (comp.  ch.  iv.  22),  and 
would  naturally  be  connected  with  it  in  the  minds  of 
men,  so  that  a  mere  indication  like  this  w^as  enough. 
For,  in  a  military  system  such  as  that  of  the  Empire 
was,  the  soldiers  and  officers  of  the  guard  formed  an 
important  part  of  the  household.  That  household, 
however,  was  an  immense  aff'air,  including  hundreds  or 

*  This,  however,  is  omitted  in  critical  editions. 


48  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHJPPIANS. 

even  thousands  of  persons — mostly  freedmen  or  slaves, 
performing  all  sorts  of  functions. 

Paul,  then,  in  charge  of  the  guard,  coming  in  contact 
with  individuals  belonging  to  the  various  reliefs  which 
successively  had  him  in  custody,  spoken  of  as  one  re- 
served to  the  judgment  of  the  Emperor  himself,  became 
known  throughout  the  quarters  of  the  guard,  and  to 
persons  of  the  household  of  every  rank  and  class.  In 
point  of  fact  we  know  and  can  prove  from  evidence 
external  to  the  Bible  that  a  few  years  later  than  this 
(perhaps  even  earlier  than  this)  there  were  members  of 
the  household  who  were  Christians.  Before  the  end  of 
the  century  a  branch  of  the  family  which  then  occupied 
the  imperial  throne  seems  to  have  joined  the  Church, 
perhaps  through  the  influence  of  a  Christian  nurse, 
who  is  commemorated  in  an  inscription  still  preserved. 

But  how  did  his  bonds  "  become  manifest  in  Christ "  ? 
The  words  no  doubt  mean  that  he  became  known  ex- 
tensively as  a  man  whose  bonds,  whose  imprisonment, 
was  for  his  adherence  to  the  name  and  doctrine  of  Jesus 
Christ.     Let  us  consider  how  this  would  come  about. 

There  might,  at  first,  be  universal  indifference  with 
reference  to  the  cause  of  this  prisoner's  confinement. 
When  his  character  and  statements  led  to  some 
curiosity  about  him,  men  might  find  it  difficult  to 
understand  what  the  real  nature  of  this  mysterious 
case  could  be.  For  while  the  charge,  whatever  form  it 
took,  was  not  yet  a  common  one,  we  may  be  very  sure 
that  the  man  struck  people  as  profoundly  different  from 


i.  I2-20.J      IIOIV   ro    r II INK   OF  PAUL  at  ROME. 


49 


ordinary  prisoners.  For  ordinary  prisoners  the  one  thing 
desirable  was  release  ;  and  they  employed  every  artifice, 
and  exhausted  every  form  of  influence  and  intrigue,  and 
were  prepared  to  sacrifice  every  scruple,  if  only  they 
could  get  free.  Here  was  a  man  who  pleaded  for  truth  ; 
his  own  freedom  seemed  to  be  quite  secondary  and 
subordinate.  So  at  last  men  come  to  an  understanding, 
more  or  less,  of  the  real  cause  of  his  bonds.  They  were 
bonds  for  Christ.  They  were  the  result  of  his  ad- 
herence to  the  faith  of  Christ's  resurrection,  and  to  the 
truths  which  that  great  event  sealed.  They  were  con- 
nected with  a  testifying  for  Christ  which  had  brought 
him  into  collision  with  the  authorities  of  his  own  nation, 
which  had  set  on  Jews  "  everywhere  "  to  "  speak 
against"  him  (Acts  xxviii.  22).  And  in  his  imprisonment 
he  did  not  lay  down  his  testimony,  but  preached  with 
all  his  heart  to  every  man  who  would  hear  him.  This 
state  of  things  dawned  upon  men's  minds,  so  far  as  they 
thought  about  him  at  all;  it  became  clear;  it  was 
"  manifest  in  the  Praetorium,  and  to  all  the  others." 

One  influence  was  at  work  which  would  at  least 
direct  attention  to  the  case.  There  were  certainly  Jews 
in  the  household ;  there  were  also  Jews  in  Rome  who 
made  it  their  business,  for  their  worldly  interest,  to 
establish  connections  in  the  household  ;  and  about  this 
time  Jewish  influence  rose  to  the  person  nearest  to 
Nero  himself.  There  was  therefore  a  class  of  persons 
in  the  household  likely  to  feel  an  interest  in  the  case. 
And   on    these   most    likely   the   influence   of  Jewish 

4 


50  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHJPPIANS. 

religious  authorities  would  be  exerted  to  produce  an 
unfavourable  opinion  of  Paul.  It  would  be  felt  desir- 
able that  the  Jews  of  the  household  should  think  of 
Paul  as  no  loyal  Jew,  as  a  seditious  person,  and  of  his 
opinions  as  not  legitimately  pertaining  to  Jewish  religion 
— as  a  religious  behef  and  practice  which  Judaism  re- 
pudiated and  denounced.  Thus,  while  Paul's  case  might 
begin  to  influence  the  guard,  because  members  of  it 
were  personally  in  contact  with  him,  in  the  rest  of  the 
household  there  was  a  class  of  persons  who  would  feel 
an  interest  in  discussing  his  case.  One  way  or  another, 
some  impression  as  to  the  peculiar  character  of  it  was 
acquired. 

Now  think  how  much  was  done  when  some  view  of 
the  real  nature  of  Paul's  bonds  had  been  lodged  in  the 
minds  of  these  men.  Think  what  an  event  that  was  in 
the  mental  history  of  some  of  these  heathens  of  the  old 
world.  Paul  was,  in  the  first  place,  a  man  very  unlike 
the  ordinary  type  of  movers  of  sedition.  It  seemed 
that  his  offence  stood  only  in  religious  opinions  or  per- 
suasions ;  and  that  itself,  precisely  in  Nero's  days,  was 
a  little  singular  to  figure  as  the  ground  of  political  im- 
prisonment. He  was  persecuted  and  endangered  for 
his  faith,  and  he  neither  denied  nor  disguised  that 
faith,  but  spent  all  possible  pains  in  proclaiming  it. 
This  was  new.  He  had  a  faith,  resting  professedly  on 
recent  facts,  which  he  proclaimed  as  indispensably 
necessary  to  be  received  by  all  men.  This  was  new. 
He  seriously  told  men,  any  man  and  every  man,  that 


i.  12-20.]      IIOJV  TO   THINK  OF  PAUL  AT  ROME.  51 

their  welfare  must  be  attained  through  their  being 
individually  transformed  to  a  type  of  character  of  the 
unworldliest  type  ;  he  could  press  that  alike  on  sordid 
Jews  and  gay  young  officers.  This  was  new.  He 
was  a  man  who,  in  place  of  the  ordinary  anxieties  and 
importunities  of  a  prisoner,  was  ever  ready  to  speak  and 
plead  in  behalf  of  Christ,  that  singular  young  Jew  who 
had  died  thirty  years  before,  but  whom  Paul  affirmed  to 
be  alive.  And  in  all  this,  however  it  might  strike  one  as 
foolish  or  odd,  there  were  tokens  of  an  honesty,  a  sanity, 
and  a  purity  that  could  not  be  explained  away.  All 
this  struck  men  who  stood  near  the  centre  of  a  world 
falling  many  ways  into  moral  ruin,  as  something  strange 
and  new.  Paul's  own  explanation  of  it  was  in  the  one 
word  "Christ."    So  his  bonds  were  manifest  in  Christ. 

A  few  of  them  might  have  heard  previously  of 
Christianity  as  a  new  and  a  malignant  superstition. 
But  another  conception  of  it  reached  them  through  the 
bonds  of  Paul.  This  imprisoned  man  was  a  fact  to  be 
accounted  for,  and  a  problem  to  be  solved.  In  him 
was  an  influence  not  wholly  to  be  escaped,  an  instance 
that  needed  a  new  interpretation.  Many  of  them  did 
not  obey  the  truth,  some  did  ;  but  at  least  something 
had  become  manifest  that  could  not  easily  be  got  rid 
of  again, — the  beginning,  in  their  case,  of  that  leaven 
which  was  eventually  to  revolutionise  the  thinking  and 
feeling  of  the  world.  Remember  also  that  most  of  these 
were  men  to  whom  Paul  at  liberty,  speaking  in  syna- 
gogues and  the  like,  would  have  found  no  access,  nor 


52  THE  EPISTLE    TO    THE  PHILH^PIANS. 

would  he  have  come  near  the  circles  to  which  their  in- 
fluence extended.  But  now,  being  imprisoned,  his  bonds 
became  manifest  in  Christ. 

Thus  does  it  often  come  to  pass  that  what  seems 
adverse,  proves  to  be  on  our  side.  Fruit  is  not  always 
borne  most  freely  when  the  visible  opportunities  of 
labouring  are  most  plentiful.  Rather  the  question  is, 
how  the  opportunities  given  are  employed,  and  how  far 
the  life  of  the  labourer  bears  witness  of  the  presence 
and  power  of  Christ. 

But  besides  the  direct  impression  on  those  who  were 
outside,  arising  from  the  fact  of  Paul's  imprisonment,  it 
became  the  means  of  stimulating  and  reinforcing  the 
labours  of  other  Christians  (ver.  14).  It  is  not  hard  to 
see  how  this  might  be.  From  Paul's  bonds,  and  from 
the  manner  and  spirit  in  which  they  were  borne,  these 
brethren  received  a  new  impression  as  to  what  should 
be  done  and  what  should  be  borne  in  the  service  of 
Christ.  They  were  infected  with  the  contagion  of  Paul's 
heroism.  The  sources  of  Paul's  consecration  and  of  his 
comfort  became  more  real  to  them ;  and  no  discourage- 
ment arising  from  pain  or  danger  could  hold  its  ground 
against  these  forces.  So  they  waxed  confident.  While 
dangers  that  threaten  Christians  are  still  only  impend- 
ing, are  still  only  looming  out  of  the  unknown  future, 
men  are  apt  to  tremble  at  them,  to  look  with  a  shrink- 
ing eye,  to  approach  with  a  reluctant  step.  Now  here 
in  the  midst  of  those  Roman  Christians  was  Paul,  in 
whom   were   embodied   the   trouble  accepted  and  the 


i.  I2-20.]      HOIV  TO   THINK  OF  PAUL   AT  ROME.  53 

danger  defied.-  At  once  Christian  hearts  became  in- 
spired with  a  more  magnanimous  and  generous  spirit. 
Wherever  dangers  and  hardships  are  endured,  even 
apart  from  Christianity,  we  know  how  prompt  the 
impulse  is  to  rush  in,  to  give  help,  and  to  share  bur- 
dens.    How  much  more  might  it  be  so  here. 

Not  that  the  impulse  to  evangelistic  earnestness, 
arising  from  Paul's  presence  in  Rome,  was  all  of  this 
kind.  It  was  not  so.  Some  preached  out  of  goodwill, 
in  full  sympathy  with  the  spirit  that  animated  Paul's 
own  labours  and  sustained  him  in  his  trials.  But  some 
preached  Christ  out  of  envy  and  spite,  and  supposed  to 
add  affliction  to  his  bonds.  How  are  we  to  fit  this  into 
our  notions  of  the  Primitive  Church  ? 

The  truth  is  that,  ever  since  the  gospel  began  to 
be  preached,  unworthy  motives  have  combined  with 
worthier  in  the  administration  and  professed  service 
of  it.  Mixture  of  motive  has  haunted  the  work  even 
of  those  who  strove  to  keep  their  motives  pure.  And 
men  in  whom  lower  motive  and  worse  motive  had 
a  strong  influence  have  struck  into  the  work  along- 
side of  the  nobler  and  purer  labourers.  So  it  has 
pleased  God  to  permit ;  that  even  in  this  sacred 
field  men  might  be  tried  and  manifested  before  the 
judgment  of  the  great  day  ;  and  that  it  might  be  the 
n*iore  plain  that  the  efiectual  blessing  and  the  true 
increase  come  from  Himself. 

More   especially   have  these  influences   become   ap- 


54  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

parent  in  connection  with  the  divisions  of  judgment 
about  Christian  doctrine  and  practice,  and  with  the  for- 
mation of  parties.  The  personal  and  the  party  feelings 
have  readily  allied  themselves,  in  too  many  men,  with  a 
self-regarding  zeal  and  with  envy  or  spite.  And  where 
these  feelings  exist  they  come  out  in  other  forms  be- 
sides their  own  proper  colours  and  their  direct  mani- 
festation. More  often  they  find  vent  in  the  way  of 
becoming  the  motive  power  of  work  that  claims  to  be 
Christian — of  work  that  ought  to  be  inspired  by  a 
purer  aim. 

There  were,  as  we  all  know,  in  the  Church  of  those 
days  powerful  sections  of  professed  believers,  who  con- 
tested Paul's  apostleship,  questioned  his  teaching,  and 
wholly  disliked  the  effects  of  his  work.  Perhaps  by 
this  time  the  strain  of  that  conflict  had  become  a  little 
less  severe,  but  it  had  not  wholly  passed  away.  We 
call  these  persons  the  Judaisers.  They  were  men 
who  looked  to  Jesus  Christ  as  the  Messiah,  who  owned 
the  authority  of  His  teaching,  and  claimed  interest  in 
His  promises.  But  they  insisted  on  linking  Chris- 
tianity to  Jewish  forms,  and  rules,  and  conditions  of 
law-keeping,  which  were  on  various  grounds  dear  and 
sacred  to  them.  They  apprehended  feebly  the  spiri- 
tuality and  Divineness  of  Christ's  religion  ;  and  what 
they  did  apprehend  they  wished  to  enslave,  for  them- 
selves and  others,  in  a  carnal  system  of  rules  and 
ritual  that  tended  to  stifle  and  to  bury  the  truth.  With 
this  there  went  a  feeling  towards  Paul  of  wrath,  fear. 


i.  12-20.]      HOW  TO   THINK  OF  PAUL   AT  ROME.  55 


and  antipathy.     Such  men  there  were  in  Rome.     Pos- 
sibly there  might   even    be   a   Christian    congregation 
in  the  city  in  which  this  type  prevailed.    At  any  rate, 
they  were  found  there.     Before  Paul's  coming  no  very 
remarkable  nor  very  successful  efforts  to  spread  abroad 
the  gospel  in  that  great  community  had  been  going  on. 
But  Paul's  arrival  made  men  solicitous  and  watchful. 
And  when  it  was  seen  that  his  presence  and  the  en- 
thusiasm that  gathered   round   him  were  beginning  to 
give  impulse  and   effect  to   the  speaking  of  the  word, 
then   this   party   too  bestirred  itself.     It  would  not — 
could    not — oppose    the    carrying   of   the    message    of 
Christ  to  men.     But  it  could  try  to  be  first  in  the  field  ; 
it  could  become  active,  energetic,  dexterous,  in  laying 
hold  of  inquiring   and  susceptible  persons,  before  the 
other  side  could  do  so  ;    it  could  subject  Paul  to  the 
mortification,    the   deserved  mortification^   of  failure    or 
defeat,  so  far  as  these  would  be  implied  in  his  seeing 
the  converts  going  to  the  side  which  was  not  his  side. 
Evangelistic  zeal  awoke  on  these  terms,  and  bestirred 
itself.     And  sheaves  that  in  other  circumstances  might 
have  lain  untended  long  enough,  were  gathered  now. 

This  very  same  spirit,  this  poor  and  questionable 
zeal  for  Christ,  still  works,  and  does  so  plentifully. 
The  activities  of  Churches,  the  alertness  of  Mission 
societies  and  agencies,  still  partake,  in  far  too  many 
instances,  of  this  sinister  inspiration.  We  ought  to 
watch  against  it  in  ourselves,  that  we  may  overcome 
the  evil  and  grow  into  a  nobler  temper.     As  regards 


56  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


others,  we  may,  in  special  cases,  see  the  working  of 
such  motives  clearly  enough,  as  Paul  saw  them  at 
Rome.  But  usually  we  shall  do  well,  when  we  can, 
to  impute  the  work  of  others  to  the  better  side  of  their 
character :  and  we  may  do  so  reasonably ;  for  as 
Christian  work  is  far  from  being  all  of  it  so  pure  and 
high  as  we  might  desire,  on  the  other  hand,  the  lowly 
and  loving  temper  of  Christ's  true  followers  is  very 
often  present  and  operative  when  it  is  not  easy  for  us 
to  see  it.  Let  us  believe  it,  because  we  believe  in  Him 
who  worketh  all  in  all. 

Now  the  Apostle,  looking  at  this,  is  glad  of  it.  He 
is  not  glad  that  any  men,  professing  Christ,  give  way 
to  evil  and  unchristian  tempers.  But  he  is  glad  that 
Christ  is  preached.  There  were  cases  in  which  he 
vehemently  contended  with  such  persons — when  they 
strove  to  poison  and  pervert  Christians  who  had  learned 
the  better  way.  But  now  he  is  thinking  of  the  outside 
world  ;  and  it  was  good  that  the  making  known  of 
Christ  should  gather  strength,  and  volume,  and  ex- 
tension. And  the  Apostle  knew  that  the  Lord  could 
bless  His  own  message,  imperfectly  delivered  perhaps, 
to  bring  thirsty  souls  to  Himself,  and  would  not  fail  in 
His  unsearchable  wisdom  to  care  for  those  who  came, 
and  to  lead  them  in  the  ways  He  thought  best.  Let 
Christ  be  preached.  The  converts  do  not  belong  to 
the  denominations,  but  first  of  all  to  Christ.  Neither 
is  it  appointed  that  the  denominations  shall  permanently 
hold  those  whom  they  bring  in  ;   but  Christ  can  hold 


i.  12-20.]      HOW  TO   THINK  OF  PAUL  AT  ROME.  57 

them,  and  can  order  their  future  in  ways  we  cannot 
foretell. 

It  is  not  true  that  the  preaching  of  Christ  serves  no 
purpose  and  yields  no  fruit,  in  cases  where  it  is  not 
carried  on  in  the  right,  or  the  best  spirit.  Indeed,  God 
honours  the  pure,  loving,  lowly  hearts,  which  He  has 
Himself  cleansed;  they  are  appropriate  agents  for  His 
work,  and  often  receive  a  special  blessing  in  connection 
with  it.  But  God  is  not  tied  up  to  give  no  success  to 
men  acting  under  wrong  motives  :  at  least,  if  we  are  not 
to  say  He  gives  the  success  to  them,  yet  in  connection 
with  them  He  is  well  able  to  take  success  to  Himself. 
Through  strange  channels  He  can  send  blessings  to 
souls,  whatever  He  gives  or  denies  to  the  unworthy 
workmen.  But  perhaps  the  success  which  attends  such 
preacliers  is  not  remarkable  nor  very  long  continued. 
Souls  truly  gathered  in  will  soon  get  beyond  their 
teaching.  At  any  rate,  it  is  a  poor  business  to  be 
serving  Christ  upon  the  devil's  principles.  It  cannot 
be  good  for  us — whatever  good  may  sometimes  come 
thereby  to  others.  Let  us  purge  ourselves  from  such 
filthiness  of  the  flesh  and  of  the  spirit. 

"  Christ  is  preached."  How  glad  the  Apostle  was 
to  think  of  it  !  How  he  longed  to  see  more  of  it,  and 
rejoiced  in  all  of  it  that  he  saw  !  One  wonders  how 
far  the  thoughts  and  feelings  associated  with  these 
words  in  Paul's  mind,  find  any  echo  in  ours.  Christ  is 
preached.  The  meaning  for  men  of  that  message,  as 
Paul   conceived    it,  grew   out  of  the  anguish   and  the 


58  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


v/onder  of  those  early  days  at  Damascus,  and  had  been 
growing  ever  since.    What  might  Christ  be  for  men  ? — - 
Christ  their  righteousness,  Christ  their  Hfe,  Christ  their 
hope  ;  God   in  Christ,   peace  in   Christ,  inheritance  in 
Christ ;  a  new  creature,  a  new  world ;  joy,  victory — 
above  all,  the   love  of  Christ,  the  love  which  passes 
knowledge  and  fills  us  with  the  fulness  of  God.    There- 
fore   also  this  was   the    burning    conviction   in   Paul's 
soul — that  Christ  must  be  preached  ;  by  all  means,  on 
all  accounts,  Christ  must  be  preached.     The  unsearch- 
able riches  of  Christ  must  be  proclaimed.     Certainly, 
whoever   might    do   or  not    do,    he    must    do    it.       He 
was  to  live  for  nothing  else.       ''  I   Paul   am   made  a 
minister  of  it."     "  Woe  is  unto  me  if  I  preach  not  the 
gospel." 

Lastly,  as  to  this,  not  only  does  he  rejoice  that  Christ 
is  announced  to  men,  but  he  has  an  assurance  that  this 
shall  have  a  happy  issue  and  influence  towards  himself 
also.  What  is  so  good  for  others  shall  also  be  found  to 
contribute  an  added  element  of  good  to  his  own  salva- 
tion ;  so  good  and  rich  is  God,  who,  in  working  wide 
results  of  Divine  beneficence,  does  not  overlook  the 
special  case  and  interest  of  His  own  servant.  This 
work,  from  which  the  workmen  would  shut  Paul  out, 
shall  prove  to  pertain  to  him  in  spite  of  them;  and  he, 
as  reaper,  shall  receive  here  also  his  wages,  gathering 
fruit  unto  life  eternal. 

For  it  is  characteristic  of  this  Epistle  (ii.  17;  iv.   lO, 
18)  that  the  Apostle  reveals  to  his  Philippian  friends 


i.  12-20.]      HOfV  TO   THINK   OF  PAUL   AT  ROME.  59 


not  only  his  thoughts  concerning  the  great  objects  of 
the  gospel,  but  also  the  desires  and  hopes  he  had  about 
his  own  experience  of  deliverance  and  well-being  in 
connection  with  the  turns  and  changes  of  progressive 
providences.     Here,  it  is  as  if  he  said  :  "  I  confess  I  am 
covetous,  not  a  little  covetous,  to  have  many  children 
in  Christ :  I  would  fain  be  a  link  in  many  a  chain  of 
influences,  by  which  all  sorts  of  persons  are  reached 
and  blessed  in  Christ.     And  here  where  I  sit  confined, 
and  am   also  the   object   of  envy  and   strife   that   are 
solicitous    to    baffle    me,    I    can    descry    ties    forming 
between  my  influence  in  my  prison  and  results  else- 
where with  which  I  seem  to  have  little  to  do.     I  can 
claim  a  something  of  mine,  granted  me  by  my  Lord,  in 
the  Christianity  of  those  who  are  kept  far  from  me,  and 
taught   perhaps  to  doubt  and  dislike  me.     If  I   in  my 
prison  experience  can  but  live  Christ,  then  all  sorts  of 
effects  and  reactions,  upon  all  sorts  of  minds,  will  have 
something  in  them  that  accrues  as  fruit  to  Christ — and 
something    also    that    accrues    as    my    Lord's    loving 
recognition    of  me.     Only  do  you  pray — for  this  is  a 
great  and  high  calling — pray,  you  who  love  me,  and 
let  the  Lord  in  answer  plentifully  give  His  Spirit;  and 
then,  while  I  lie  here  in   the   imprisonment  which  my 
Lord  has  assigned  to  me,  and  in  which  He  vitalises  me, 
oh  how  fruitful  and  successful  shall  my  life  be,  what 
gain  and  wealth  of  salvation    shall    be  mine !     There 
shall  be  fruit  for  an  Apostle  still,  coming  in   ways   I 
cannot  follow ;  and  in  it,  and  with  it,  the  confirmation 


6o  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE   PHILIPPIANS. 

and  deepening  of  my  own  eternal  life.       It  shall  turn 
to  my  salvation." 

So  the  eager  Apostle,  caged  and  cabined,  triumphed 
still  in  Christ,  assured  that  there  was  a  way  of  dealing 
with  his  Lord's  will,  discouraging  as  that  might  seem, 
in  which  it  would  reveal  both  enlargement  for  the 
Kingdom  and  the  most  loving  enrichment  also  for 
himself. 

This  is  a  commonplace  of  Christianity.  Christians 
trust  in  Christ  to  cause  all  to  work  for  good.  They  know 
He  can  impart  His  most  precious  gifts  through  what  seem 
adverse  providences.  But  it  is  a  memorable  embodi- 
ment of  this  conviction  that  meets  us  in  the  Apostle's 
confidence,  that  when  Christ's  providence  outwardly 
stops  his  work,  it  not  the  less  pertains  to  Christ's 
wisdom  to  continue  and  extend  his  usefulness.  The 
applications  of  the  same  principle  to  various  cases  in 
which  Christians  are  trained  through  disappointment 
are  innumerable.  But  mostly,  even  when,  in  a  way, 
we  are  open  to  the  lesson,  we  take  it  too  easily.  We 
forget  that  here  also  it  is  Christlike  life  and  life  in 
Christ  that  proves  so  fruitful  and  so  happy.  We  do 
not  apprehend  how  great  a  thing  it  is — what  prayer  it 
asks-  what  supply  of  the  Spirit  of  Jesus  Christ.  For 
the  Apostle,  as  we  learn  from  what  presently  follows, 
this  blessing  came  in  the  line  of  *'  earnest  expectation 
and  hope,"  It  was  not  an  exceptional  effort  of  faith 
which  awoke  in  him  so  firm  a  confidence  about  his  cir- 
cumstances at  Rome,  and  was  rewarded  so  manifestly. 


i.  I2-20.]      now  TO    THINK   OF  PAUL  AT  ROME.  6i 

His  whole  life  was  set  on  the  same  key.  He  applied  to 
that  Roman  experience  the  same  mode  of  view  which 
he  strove  to  apply  to  every  experience.  This  was  his 
expectation — he  was  on  the  outlook  for  it — and  this  his 
hope,  that  not  only  in  one  great  crisis,  but  all  along  his 
pilgrimage,  his  life  should  eventuate  one  way — should 
shape  into  glory  to  Christ.  His  whole  life  must  turn 
out  to  be  a  loving,  believing,  effectual  manifestation  of 
the  greatness  and  goodness  of  Christ.  This  was  what 
rose  before  his  mind  as  Success  in  Life.  His  thoughts, 
his  prayers  turned  this  way.  As  some  men's  ijiinds 
turn  spontaneously  to  money,  and  some  to  family  pros- 
perity, and  some  to  fame,  and  some  to  various  lines  of 
recreation  or  of  accomplishment,  so  Paul's  turned  to 
this.  And  in  this  world  of  failure  and  disappointment, 
success  welcomed  him  and  gladdened  him.  His  would 
have  been  the  nobler  life  even  if  its  expectation  had 
been  disg^ppointed.  But  this  is  the  life  which  cannot 
fail,  because  God  is  in  it. 

There  is  a  great  admonition  here  for  all  of  us  who 
profess  to  be  followers  of  Christ.  Our  line  of  service 
may  not  be  so  emphatically  marked  out  for  distinction, 
for  special  and  exceptional  eminence  of  doing  and 
suffering,  as  Paul's  was.  But  for  every  believer  the 
path  of  service  opens,  however  commonplace  and 
undistinguished  its  scenery  may  be.  And  in  some  of 
its  stages  it  takes,  for  all  of  us,  the  peculiar  character, 
it  assumes  the  distinguishing  features  which  mark  it 
out  as  Christian.     Here,  in  Paul,  we  see  the  spirit  that 


62  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHIPPIANS. 


should  inspire  service,  should  make  the  strength,  the 
peculiarity,  the  success  of  it,  should  be  the  quickening 
and  gladdening  influence  of  its  efforts  and  its  prayers. 
This  ought  to  be  for  us  also  the  longing  outlook  and 
the  hope. 

Let  us  note  also,  before  we  pass  on,  that  the  Lord's 
personal  kindness  to  ourselves  is  matter  of  legitimate 
rejoicing  and  legitimate  desire.  That  may  be  gathered 
from  almost  every  verse.  There  have  been  persons  who 
conceived  that  a  true  Christian  is  to  be  so  occupied 
with  the  thought  of  God's  glory  and  will,  or  so  occupied 
with  the  weal  of  others,  as  to  have  no  personal  desires 
or  interests  at  all.  This  is  a  mistake.  One  of  the  most 
intimate  and  special  channels  in  which  the  glory  of  God 
and  the  revelation  of  it  are  secured,  is  in  the  expression 
of  His  goodwill  to  His  child's  own  heart.  This  is  the 
privilege  of  faith,  to  cherish  the  expectation  that  His 
glory  and  our  good  are  to  agree  well  together.  Only, 
as  to  the  latter,  let  us  leave  it  to  Him  how  it  is  to  come 
to  pass;  and  then  it  will  come  divinely  and  wonderfully. 
"  The  Lord  is  my  shepherd,  /  shall  not  want." 


THE   CHOICE  BETWEEN  LIVING  AND  DYING. 


63 


"  For  to  me  to  live  is  Christ,  and  to  die  is  gain.  But  if  to  live  in 
the  flesh, — if  this  is  the  fruit  of  my  work,  then  what  I  shall  choose  I 
wot  not.  But  I  am  in  a  strait  betwixt  the  two,  having  the  desire  to 
depart  and  be  with  Christ ;  for  it  is  very  far  better :  yet  to  abide  in 
the  flesh  is  more  needful  for  your  sake.  And  having  this  confidence,  I 
know  that  I  shall  abide,  yea,  and  abide  with  you  all,  for  your  progress 
and  joy  in  the  faith ;  that  your  glorying  may  abound  in  Christ  Jesus 
in  me  through  my  presence  with  you  again." — Phil.  i.  21-26  (R.V.). 


64 


CHAPTER   IV. 

THE   CHOICE  BETWEEN  LIVING  AND  DYING. 

AT  the  close  of  the  preceding  section  we  see  that  the 
ruling  principle  of  the  Apostle — the  earnest  ex- 
pectation and  hope  which  inspired  his  life — came  into 
special  exercise  at  this  time  with  reference  to  the  pos- 
sibility, and  the  likelihood,  of  an  early  and  violent  death. 
Dying  for  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  as  well  as 
enduring  imprisonment  for  Him,  might  be  near.  He 
might  not  only  be  straitened  in  his  labours,  and  secluded 
from  the  activities  connected  with  his  loved  work  on 
earth,  but  might  be  completely  and  finally  withdrawn 
from  it  by  Roman  doom  and  execution.  The  Apostle's 
faith  looked  steadily  at  this  final  possibility.  As  at  all 
times,  so  now  also,  Christ  should  be  magnified  in  him, 
whether  by  life  or  by  death. 

Now,  when  some  great  alternative  of  the  future  rises 
before  a  Christian, — some  possibility  which  God's  pro- 
vidence may  turn  either  way, — it  is  natural  that  he 
should  look  heedfully  to  it,  that  he  may  order  aright 
his  faith  and  patience  as  the  day  of  decision  draws 
near.     And  it  is  natural  in  particular  that  his  thoughts 

65  ,       5 


66  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


\} 


should  be  occupied  by  the  consideration  how  far  the 
one  way  of  it  is  in  itself  more  attractive  to  him  than 
the  other.  For  in  view  of  that  he  has  to  watch  his 
heart,  that  as  to  what  seems  more  attractive  he  may 
not  desire  it  idolatrously,  nor  let  his  heart  be  "over- 
charged "  with  it  if  it  is  realised  ;  and  that  as  to  what 
seems  less  attractive  he  may  await  God's  will  with 
submission  and  faith,  and  welcome  it,  if  so  it  come 
to  pass,  with  sincerity.  So  also  the  Apostle  fixes  his 
eye,  ponderingly,  on  this  alternative  of  life  or  death, 
so  strongly  suggested  by  his  circumstances.  But,  as  it 
were,  with  a  smile  he  recognises  that  to  a  man  standing, 
as  he  did,  in  the  light  of  Christ,  it  was  hard  to  say 
which  should  attract  him  most.  Life  and  Death — what 
had  they  once  been  to  him  ?  what  were  they  still  to 
many  ?  To  live,  self — self  pleased,  provided  for,  con- 
tended for,  perhaps  fighting  for  itself  a  losing  battle 
with  a  bitter  heart ;  to  die,  a  dark,  dire  necessity,  full 
of  fear  and  doubt.  But  now,  to  live  is  Christ,  In  all 
life  as  it  came  to  him,  in  all  its  various  providences,  he 
found  Christ ;  in  all  life,  as  it  fell  to  him  to  be  lived, 
he  found  the  circumstances  set  for  him  and  the  oppor- 
tunity given  to  follow  Christ ;  in  all  the  attraction  and 
all  the  pressure,  the  force  and  strain  of  life,  he  found 
the  privilege  of  receiving  Christ  and  employing  Christ's 
grace,  the  opportunity  for  living  by  the  faith  of  the  Son 
of  God.  That  was  all  very  real  to  him  :  it  was  not 
only  a  fine  ideal,  owned  indeed  but  only  distantly  and 
dimly  descried  ;  no,  it  was  a  reality  daily  fulfilled  to 


i.  21-26.]  THE  CHOICE  BETWEEN  LIVING  AND  DYING.   67 


him.  To  live  was  Christ,  with  a  support,  an  elevation, 
and  a  love  in  it  such  as  the  world  l<nows  not.  That 
was  good,  oh  how  good  !  And  then  to  die  was  better  : 
to  die  was  gain.  For  to  die,  also,  was  "Christ"  ;  but 
with  many  a  hindrance  passed  away,  and  many  a  conflict 
ended,  and  many  a  promise  coming  into  fulfilment  as 
here  it  could  not  do.  For  if,  as  to  his  own  interest  and 
portion,  he  lived  by  hope,  then  death  was  a  long  step 
forward  into  possession  and  realisation.  By  grace 
Paul  was  to  show  how  he  valued  Christ ;  he  was  to 
show  it  in  his  life.  And  Christ  was  to  show  His  care 
for  Paul — in  this  life,  no  doubt,  very  lovingly;  but  more 
largely  and  fully  at  his  death.  To  live  is  Christ — to 
die  is  gain  ;  to  be  all  for  Christ  while  I  live,  to  find  at 
length  He  is  all  for  me  when  I  die  ! 

Which  should  he  prefer,  which  should  he  pray  for 
(subject  to  God's  will),  which  should  he  hope  for,  life 
or  death  ?  The  one  would  continue  him  in  a  labour 
for  Christ,  which  Christ  taught  him  to  love.  The 
other  would  bring  him  to  a  sinless  and  blessed  fellow- 
ship with  Christ,  which  Christ  taught  him  to  long  for. 
Looking  to  the  two,  how  should  he  order  his  desires  ? 

It  is  because  he  speaks  as  one  always  does  speak 
who  is  pondering  something— the  words  rising,  as  it 
were,  from  what  he  sees  before  him — that  he  speaks  so 
elliptically  in  ver.  22.  "But  if  to  live  in  the  flesh 
come  to  me,  as  its  fruit  and  reward  bringing  .  .  ." 
What  ?  The  Apostle  sees,  but  does  not  say  :  something 
that  might  well  reconcile    him    to  prolonged  toil   and 


68  THE  EPISTLE    TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

suffering.  But  why  produce  the  considerations  on 
either  side,  why  balance  them  against  one  another? 
It  is  too  long,  too  difficult  a  process.  And  how  can 
even  an  apostle  confidently  judge  as  to  better  or  best 
here?  ''And  what  I  shall  choose,  really  I  do  not 
know."  But  this  he  knows,  that  so  far  as  his  own 
desires  are  concerned,  so  far  as  the  possible  futures 
draw  his  spirit,  he  is  in  a  strait  between  two,  having  a 
desire  to  depart  and  to  be  with  Christ,  for  that  is  far 
better ;  and  yet  that  he  should  continue  in  the  flesh  is 
of  more  imperative  necessity  for  the  sake  of  friends  like 
the  Philippians. 

Not  every  Christian  is  in  the  state  of  mind  which 
would  naturally  express  itself  as  a  desire  forthwith  to 
depart  and  be  with  Christ.  The  great  hope  claims  its 
place  in  every  Christian  heart ;  but  not  in  every  case 
so  as  to  inspire  the  longing  to  overleap  all  intermediate 
stages.  Rather  must  we  not  say  that  there  are  periods 
of  Christian  experience,  as  there  are  also  casts  of  char- 
acter, for  which  it  is  more  usual  and  natural  to  desire, 
if  it  be  God's  will,  some  further  experience  of  life  on 
earth  ?  If  this  be  immature  Christianity,  we  will  not, 
therefore,  judge  that  it  cannot  be  genuine. 

Yet  to  be  ready,  and,  subject  to  God's  will,  desirous 
to  depart,  is  an  attainment  to  be  aimed  at  and  made 
good.  Sooner  or  later  it  should  come.  It  lies  in  the 
line  of  ripening  Christian  affection  and  growing  Christian 
insight.  For  this  is  better.  It  is  not  that  life  in 
this  world  is  not  good  :  it  is  good,  when  it  is  life  in 


i.  21-26.]  THE  CHOICE  BETWEEN  LIVING  AND  DYING.   69 


Christ.     It  has  its  trials,  its  conflicts,  and  its  dangers  ; 
it  has  also  its   elements  of  defect   and  evil  :  yet  it  is 
good.     It  is  good  to  be  a  child  of  God  in  training  for 
a   better  country  ;    it   is  good   to   be  one  who  carries 
the  life  of  faith  through  the  experiences  of  time.     And, 
for  some  especially,  there  is  a  strong  and  not  an  un- 
worthy attraction  in  the  forms  of  exercise  which  open 
to  us  just  in  such  a  life  as  this,  under  the  guarantee 
and  the  consecration  of  Christ.     Knowledge  opens  its 
career,   in  which  many  a  generous  mind  is  drawn  to 
prove  its  powers.     Love,  in  all  the  variety  of  its  calmer 
and  its  more  ardent  affections,  sends  a  glow  through  life 
which  gladdens  it  with  promise.     The  tasks  which  call 
for  practical  effort  and  achievement  stir  vigorous  natures 
with   a   high  ambition.     And  when    all    these   spheres 
are  illuminated    by  the    light,   and    dominated    by   the 
authority,  and  quickened  for  us  by  the  love  of  Christ, 
is  not  life  on  those  terms  interesting  and  good  ?     True, 
it  is  destined  to  disclose  its  imperfection.     Our  know- 
ledge   proves  to  be  so  partial  ;  our  love  is    so  sorely 
grieved,  so  often  bereaved,  sometimes  it  is  even  killed  ; 
and  active  life  must  learn  that  what  is  crooked  cannot 
wholly    be    made   straight,   and   that  what   is   wanting 
cannot  be  numbered.     So  that  life  itself  shall  teach  a 
Christian  that  his  longings  must  seek  their  rest  further 
on.     Yet  life  in  Christ  here  upon  the  earth  is  good  : 
let  us  say  no  unkind  word  of  those  who  feel  it  so, — 
whose  hearts,  with  true  loyalty  to  Christ,  would  yet  if 
it  be  His  will  put  life  fully  to  the  proof  before  they 


70  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


go.  Still,  this  must  be  said  and  pressed — let  it  be 
joyfully  believed — that  to  depart  is  better.  It  is  far 
better.  It  is  better  to  be  done  with  sin.  It  is  better 
to  be  where  all  hopes  are  fulfilled.  It  is  better  to  rise 
above  a  scene  in  which  all  is  precarious,  and  in  which 
a  strange  sadness  thrills  through  our  happiness  even 
when  we  possess  it.  To  be  where  Christ  most  fully, 
eminently,  experimentally  is,  that  is  best.  Therefore  it  is 
better  to  depart.     Let  mortality  be  swallowed  up  of  life. 

It  is  not  only  better,  so  that  we  may  own  it  so  to  be 
as  a  certainty  of  faith ;  but  also  so  that  we  may  and 
ought  to  feel  it  warming  and  drawing  the  heart  with 
delight  and  with  desire.  It  is  not  needful  that  we 
should  judge  more  hardly  of  life  on  earth  ;  but  we  might 
attain  a  far  more  gladdening  appreciation  of  what  it 
must  be  to  be  with  Christ.  With  no  rebellion  against 
God's  appointment  when  it  keeps  us  here,  and  no 
grudging  spirit  towards  earth's  mercies  and  employ- 
ments, we  might  yet  have  this  thought  of  departing  in 
God's  time  as  a  real  and  bright  hope ;  a  great  element 
of  comfort  and  of  strength ;  a  support  in  trouble  ;  an 
elevating  influence  in  times  of  gladness ;  an  anchor 
of  the  soul,  sure  and  steadfast,  entering  into  that  which 
is  within  the  veil. 

The  hope  of  the  gospel  implies  it.  If  that  hope  is 
ours  and  is  duly  cherished,  must  it  not  assert  itself  and 
sway  the  heart,  so  as  more  and  more  to  command  the 
life  ? 

The  earnest  of  the  Spirit  implies  it.     Of  the  very 


i.  21-26.]  THE  CHOICE  BETWEEN  LIVING  AND  DYING.   71 

substance  of  the  life  eternal  a  foretaste  comes,  in  the 
presence  and  grace  of  the  Spirit  of  love  and  comfort. 
Can  that  be  with  us,  can  that  leaven  work  duly  in  our 
hearts,  and  not  awaken  longing  for  the  full  entrance  into 
so  great  a  good  ?  It  may  be  expected  of  us  Christians 
that  we  should  lift  up  our  heads  because  redemption  is 
drawing  nigh. 

As  for  the  Apostle,  however,  if  the  choice  were  his, 
he  felt  that  it  must  fall  in  favour  of  still  cleaving  to  the 
present  life  ;  for  this,  though  less  attractive  to  himself, 
was  more  necessary  for  the  Churches,  and,  in  particular, 
for  his  friends  at  Philippi.  This  was  so  clear  to  him 
that  he  was  persuaded  his  life  would,  in  fact,  be  pro- 
longed by  Him  who  appoints  to  all  their  term  of 
ministry.  Probably  we  are  not  to  take  this  as  a  pro- 
phecy, but  only  as  the  expression  of  a  strong  persuasion. 
Work  still  lay  before  him  in  the  line  of  training  and 
cheering  these  believing  friends,  furthering  and  gladden- 
ing their  faith.  He  hoped  to  see  them  yet,  and  to 
renew  the  old  glad  ''fellowship"  (ch.  i.  5).  So  there 
should  be  for  the  Philippians  fresh  matter  of  exultation, 
— exultation  primarily  in  the  great  salvation  of  Christ, 
but  yet  receiving  impulse  and  increase  from  the 
presence  and  ministry  of  Paul.  Mainly,  they  would 
be  exceeding  glad  of  Christ ;  but  yet,  subordinately, 
exceeding  glad  of  Paul  also. 

It  is  a  striking  thing  to  see  how  confident  the 
Apostle  was  of  the  resources  given  to  him  to  wield.  He 
knew  how  profitable  and  how  gladdening  his  coming 


72  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPJANS. 


would  be  to  the  Philippian  believers.  He  admits  no 
doubt  of  it.  God  has  set  him  in  the  world  for  this, 
that  he  may  make  many  rich.  Having  nothing,  he  yet 
goes  about,  as  one  possessing  all  things,  to  impart  his 
treasures  to  all  kinds  of  people.  To  disguise  this  would 
be  for  him  mock  humility  ;  it  would  be  a  denying  of 
his  Master's  grace.  When  ministers  of  Christ  come 
aright  to  this  impression  of  their  own  calling,  then  they 
are  also  powerful.  But  they  must  come  to  it  aright. 
For  it  was  not  the  Apostle's  consciousness  of  himself, 
but  his  consciousness  of  his  Master,  that  bred  this 
superb  confidence,  this  unabated  expectation.  In  sub- 
ordination to  that  faith  the  Apostle  no  doubt  had 
specific  reason  to  know  that  his  own  personal  mission 
was  of  the  highest  importance,  and  was  designed  to 
accomplish  great  results.  Ordinary  ministers  of  Christ 
do  not  share  this  peculiar  ground  of  confidence.  But 
no  one  who  has  any  kind  of  mission  from  Christ  can 
discharge  it  aright  if  he  is  destitute  of  the  expectancy 
which  looks  forward  to  results,  and,  indeed,  to  momen- 
tous results ;  for  the  reapers  in  Christ's  harvest  are  to 
"  gather  fruit  unto  life  eternal."  To  cherish  this  mood, 
not  in  the  manner  of  a  vain  presumption,  but  in  the 
manner  of  faith  in  a  great  Saviour,  is  the  practical 
question  for  gospel  ministers. 

Alike  in  the  utterance  of  his  mind  about  his 
PhiHppian  friends,  and  in  his  explanations  about  him- 
self, it  is  remarkable  how  thoroughly  the  Apostle 
carries  his  faith   through   the  whole  detail  of  persons 


i.  21-26.]  THE  CHOICE  BETWEEN  LIVING  AND  DYING.   73 


and  things.  The  elements  and  forces  of  the  Kingdom 
of  God  are  not  for  him  remote  splendours  to  be 
venerated  from  afar.  To  his  faith  they  are  embodied, 
they  are  vitally  and  divinely  present,  in  the  history  of 
the  Churches  and  in  his  own  history.  He  sees  Christ 
working  in  the  Philippian  believers  ;  he  sees  in  their 
Christian  profession  and  service  a  fire  of  love  caught 
from  the  love  of  Christ — the  increase  and  triumph  of 
which  he  anticipates  with  aftectionate  solicitude.  The 
tender  mercies  of  Christ  are  the  element  in  which  he 
and  they  are  alike  moving,  and  this  blessedness  it  is 
their  privilege  assiduously  to  improve.  So  he  was 
minded  in  regard  to  all  the  Churches.  If  in  any  of 
them  the  indications  are  feeble  and  dubious,  only  so 
much  the  more  intently  does  he  scrutinise  them,  to 
recognise,  in  spite  of  difficulty,  that  which  comes  and 
.  only  could  come  from  his  Master's  Spirit.  If  indications 
too  significant  of  a  wholly  different  influence  have 
broken  out,  and  demand  the  severest  rebukes,  he  still 
casts  about  for  tokens  of  the  better  kind.  For  surely 
Christ's  Spirit  is  in  His  Churches,  and  surely  the  seed 
is  growing  in  Christ's  field  towards  a  blessed  harvest. 
If  men  have  to  be  warned  that  naming  the  name  of 
Christ  they  may  be  reprobates,  that  without  the  Spirit 
of  Christ  they  are  none  of  His,  this  comes  as  some- 
thing sad  and  startling  to  be  spoken  to  men  in  Christian 
Churches.  So  also  in  his  own  case — Christ  is  speaking 
and  working  by  him,  and  all  providences  that  befall  him 
are  penetrated  by  the  love,  the  wisdom,  and  the  might 


74  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

of  Christ.     In  nothing  is   the  Apostle  more  enviable 
than  in  this  victoriousness  of  his  faith  over  the  earthly 
shows  of  things,  and  over  the  unUkelihoods  which  in  this 
refractory    world    always    mask  and  misrepresent   the 
good  w^ork.     We,  for  our  part,  find  our  faith  continually 
abashed  by  those  same  unlikeHhoods.     We  recognise 
the  course  of  this  world,  which  speaks  for  itself ;  but  we 
are  uncertain  and  discouraged  as  to  what  the  Saviour  is 
doing.     The  mere  commonplaceness  of  Christians,  and 
of  visible  Christianity,  and  of  ourselves,  is  allowed  to 
baffle  us.     Nothing  in  the  life  of  the  Church,  we  are 
ready   to    say,    is   very   interesting,    very   vivid,    very 
hopeful.     The  great  fire  burning  in  the  world  ever  since 
Pentecost   is    for  us  scarcely  recognisable.     We  even 
take  credit   for  being  so   hard  to  please.     But  if   the 
quick  faith  and  love  of  Paul  the  prisoner  were  ours,  we 
should  be  sensitive  to  echoes  and  pulsations  and  move- 
ments everywhere, — we  should  be  aware  that  the  voivce 
and  the  power  of  Christ  are  everywhere  stirring  in  His 
Churches. 


UNDAUNTED  AND   UNITED  STEADFASTNESS. 


75 


"Only  let  your  manner  of  life  be  worthy  of  the  gospel  of  Christ, 
that,  whether  I  come  and  see  you  or  be  absent,  I  may  hear  of  your 
state,  that  ye  stand  fast  in  one  spirit,  with  one  soul  striving  for  the 
faith  of  the  gospel ;  and  in  nothing  affrighted  by  the  adversaries : 
which  is  for  them  an  evident  token  of  perdition,  but  of  your  salvation, 
and  that  from  God ;  because  to  you  it  hath  been  granted  in  the  behalf 
of  Christ,  not  only  to  believe  on  Him,  but  also  to  suffer  in  His  behalf: 
having  the  same  conflict  which  ye  saw  in  me,  and  now  hear  to  be  in 
me." -Phil.  i.  27-30  (R.V.). 


76 


CHAPTER   V. 

UNDAUNTED  AND   UNITED  STEADFASTNESS. 

AT  ver.  27  the  letter  begins  to  be  hortative.  Up  to 
this  point  the  Apostle  has  been  taking  the 
Philippians  into  his  confidence,  in  order  that  they  may 
share  his  point  of  view  and  see  things  as  He  sees 
them.  Now  he  begins  more  directly  to  call  them  to  the 
attitude  and  work  which  become  them  as  Christians ; 
but  up  to  ver.  30  the  sense  of  the  dear  tie  between  him 
and  them  is  still  very  present,  colouring  and  controlling 
his  exhortations. 

"  Be  assured,"  he  has  been  saying,  "  that  by  the 
grace  of  God,  abounding  amid  trials,  it  is  well  with 
me ;  and  I  have  very  good  hope  of  yet  again  enjoying 
this  honour,  that  through  my  means  it  may  be  well  with 
you: — only  fix  you  on  this,  let  this  be  your  concern,  to 
walk  as  it  becomes  the  gospel :  this  is  the  ground  on 
which  you  must  win  your  victory  ;  this  is  the  line  on 
which  alone  you  can  make  any  effectual  contribution  to 
our  common  welfare,  and  that  of  all  the  Churches."  So 
the  Apostle  urges.     For,  let  us  be  assured  of  it,  while 

we  debate  with  ourselves  by  what  efforts  and  in  what 

77 


78  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHIUPPIANS. 


lines  we  can  do  some  stroke  of  service  to  the  good 
cause,  or  to  some  special  representative  of  it,  after  all 
the  greatest  and  weightiest  thing  by  far  that  we  can 
do  is  to  be  thoroughly  consistent  and  devoted  in  our 
own  Christian  walk,  living  lives  answerable  to  the 
gospel. 

The  original  suggests  that  the  Apostle  thinks  of  the 
Philippians  as  citizens  of  a  state,  who  are  to  carry  on 
their  life  according  to  the  constitution  and  laws  of  the 
state  to  which  they  belong.     That  citizenship  of  theirs, 
as    we  shall  afterwards  see,  is  in  heaven  (ch.  iii.  20), 
where  Christ  their  head    is    gone.     The    privilege  of 
belonging  to  it  had  reached  them  through  the  call  of 
God.    And  it  was  their  business  on  the  earth  to  act  out 
the  citizenship,  to  prove  the  reality  of  it  in  their  con- 
duct, and  to  manifest  to  the  world  what  sort  of  citizen- 
ship it  is.     Now  the  standard  according  to  which  this 
is  to  be  done  is  the  gospel  of  Christ — the  gospel,  not 
only  as  it  contains  a  code  of  rules  for  practice,  but  as  it 
reveals  the  Saviour  to  whom  we  are  to  be  conformed, 
and  discloses  a  Divine  order  of  holiness  and  grace  to 
the  influence  of  which  our  souls  are  to  bow.      And 
indeed,  if  our  thinking,  and  speaking,  and  acting  held 
some  proportion  to  the  gospel  we  profess  to  believe; 
if  they  corresponded  to  the  purity,  the  tenderness,  the 
Divine  worth  of  the  gospel ;  if  from  step  to  step  of  life 
we  were  indeed  building  ourselves  on  our  most  holy 
faith,   what  manner  of  persons  should  we  be  ?     This 
opens  more  fully  in  the  next  chapter. 


5.27-30.]  UNDAUNTED  AND  UNITED  STEADFASTNESS.   79 

But  we  are  tried  by  circumstances ;  and  the  same 
Christianity  will  take  different  manifestations  according 
to  the  circumstances  in  which  it  is  unfolded.  For  every 
Christian  and  for  every  Christian  community  much  de- 
pends on  the  shaping  influence  of  the  providences  of  life. 
The  Apostle,  therefore,  must  have  regard  to  the  circum- 
stances of  the  Philippians.  We  are  all  ready,  commonly, 
to  exert  ourselves,  as  we  say,  to  ''improve  our  circum- 
stances"; and,  in  one  view,  it  is  natural  and  fitting 
enough.  Yet  it  is  of  more  importance — much  more — 
that  in  the  circumstances  as  they  stand  we  should  bear 
ourselves  in  a  manner  worthy  of  the  gospel.  Some  of 
us  are  ready  to  stir  heaven  and  earth  in  order  that 
certain  unwelcome  conditions  of  our  lot  may  be  altered 
or  abolished.  It  would  be  more  to  the  point  to  walk 
with  God  under  them  as  long  as  they  last.  When  they 
have  passed  away,  the  opportunity  for  faith,  love,  and 
service  which  tlicy  have  furnished  will  have  passed 
away  for  ever. 

The  Apostle,  therefore,  specifies  what  he  wished  to 
see  or  hear  of  in  the  Philippian  Church,  as  proper  to 
the  circumstances  in  which  they  stood.  He  calls  for 
steadfastness  as  against  influences  that  might  shake 
and  overthrow,  put  in  motion  against  them  by  the 
enemies  of  the  gospel. 

The  words  suggest  the  strain  of  the  situation  as  it 
was  felt  in  those  small  early  Churches.  It  is  difficult 
for  us  adequately  to  conceive  it.  There  was  the  un- 
friendly aspect  both  of  Roman  law  and  of  public  opinion 


8o  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHHJPPIANS. 

to   unauthorised   religious   fraternities  ;    there  was  the 
hostility  of  ardent   Jews,  skilful    to    stir  into   activity 
enmities    which    otherwise    might    have    slumbered  ; 
there  was  the  jealousy  of  religious  adventurers  of  all 
kinds  with  whom  that  age  was   becoming  rife.      But 
besides,  there  was   the  immense  pressure  of  general 
unbelief.     Christianity  had  to  be  embraced  and  main- 
tained   against    the    judgment    and    under    the    cool 
contempt  of  the  immense  majority,  including  the  wealth, 
the  influence,  the  wisdom,  the  culture — all  that  was 
brilliant,  imposing,  and  conclusive.     This  temper  was 
disdainful    for   the    most    part :  it    became    bitter    and 
spiteful   if  in    any   instance    Christianity    came    near 
enough    to    threaten   its    repose.     It  found,  no  doubt, 
active  interpreters  and  representatives  in  every  class, 
in  every  family  circle.    Christianity  was  carried  forward 
in  those  days  by  a  great  spiritual  power  working  with 
the  message.   It  needed  nothing  less  than  this  to  sustain 
the  Christian  against  the   deadweight    of  the    world's 
adverse  verdict,  echoing  back  from  every  tribunal  by 
which    the   world  gives   forth   its   judgments.      Then, 
every  feeling  of  doubt,  or  tendency  to  vacillate,  created 
by  these  influences,  was  reinforced  by  the  consciousness 
of  faults  and  failings  among  the  Christians  themselves. 
Against  all  this  faith  held  its  ground,  faith  clinging 
to  the  unseen  Lord.     In  that  faith  the  Philippians  were 
to  stand  fast.     Not  only  so  ;  looking  on  *'  the  faith  "  as 
if  it  were  a  spiritual  personality,  striving  and  striven 
with,  they  were  to  throw  their  own  being  and  energy 


i.  27-30.]   UNDAUNTED  AND  UNITED  STEADFASTNESS.  81 


into  the  struggle,  that  the  cause  of  faith  might  make 
head  and  win  fresh  victories.  The  faith  is  knocking 
at  many  doors,  is  soHciting  many  minds.  But  much 
depends  on  ardent  and  energetic  Christians,  who  will 
throw  their  personal  testimony  into  the  conflict,  and 
who  will  exert  on  behalf  of  the  good  cause  the  magic  of 
Christian  sympathy  and  Christian  love.  So  they  should 
be  fellow-athletes  contending  on  the  side  of  faith,  and 
in  the  cause  of  faith. 

In  our  own  day  a  livelier  sense  has  awakened  of  the 
obligation  lying  upon  Christians  to  spend  and  be  spent 
in  their  Master's  cause,  and  to  be  fellow-helpers  to  the 
truth.  Many  voices  are  raised  to  enforce  the  duty. 
Still,  it  cannot  be  doubted  that  in  most  cases  this  aspect 
of  the  Christian  calling  is  too  languidly  conceived  and 
too  intermittently  put  in  practice.  And  many  in  all  the 
Churches  are  so  little  qualified  to  labour  for  the  faith,  or 
even  stand  fast  in  it,  that  their  Christianity  is  only  held  up 
externally  by  the  consent  and  custom  of  those  about  them. 

At  this  point  and  in  this  connection  the  Apostle 
begins  to  bring  forward  the  exhortation  to  peace  and 
unity  which  goes  forward  into  the  following  chapter. 
Apparently  no  steadfastness  will,  in  his  view,  be  "  worthy 
of  the  gospel,"  unless  this  loving  unity  is  added.  If  there 
was  a  common  instinct  of  worldliness  and  unbelief, 
giving  unity  to  the  influences  against  which  the  Philip- 
pians  had  to  contend,  the  operation  of  a  mighty  uniting 
influence  was  to  be  expected  on  the  other  side,  an 
influence  Divine  in  its  origin  and  energy.     The  subject 

6 


82  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


is  brought  forward,  one  can  see,  in  view  of  tendencies 
to  disagreement  which  had  appeared  at  Phihppi.  But 
it  was  a  topic  on  which  the  Apostle  had  intensely  strong 
convictions,  and  he  was  ever  ready  to  expatiate  upon  it. 

We  need  not  be  surprised  at  the  earnestness  about 
peace  and  unity  evinced  in  the  Epistles,  nor  think  it 
strange  that  such  exhortations  were  required.  Consider 
the  case  of  these  early  converts.  What  varieties  of 
training  had  formed  their  characters ;  what  prejudices 
of  diverse  races  and  religions  continued  to  be  active  in 
their  minds.  Consider  also  what  a  world  of  new  truths 
had  burst  upon  them.  It  was  impossible  they  could  at 
once  take  in  all  these  in  their  just  proportions.  Various 
aspects  of  things  would  strike  different  minds,  and 
difficulty  must  needs  be  felt  about  the  reconciliation  of 
them.  In  addition  to  theory,  practice  opened  a  field  of 
easy  divergence.  Church  life  had  to  be  developed,  and 
Church  work  had  to  be  done.  Rules  and  precedents 
were  lacking.  Everything  had  to  be  planned  and  built 
from  the  foundation.  The  very  energy  of  the  Christian 
faith  tended  to  produce  energetic  individualities.  If  all 
these  things  are  weighed,  instead  of  being  surprised  at 
the  rise  of  difficulties  we  may  rather  wonder  how 
interminable  disagreement  was  averted.  The  temper 
of  "  standing  fast "  might  seem  perhaps  likely  rather  to 
aggravate  than  to  alleviate  some  of  these  sources  of 
discord. 

On  the  other  hand,  to  the  Apostle's  mind  a  glorious 
unity    was   one   especial  mark  of  the  triumph  of  the 


i.27-30.]  UNDAUNTED  AND  UNITED  STEADFASTNESS.  83 

Kingdom  of  God.     That  expressed   the  victory  in  all 
the  members  of  the  new  society  of  one  influence  pro- 
ceeding from  one  Lord  ;  it  expressed  the  prevalence  of 
that  new  life  the  chief  element  of  which  is  the  uniting 
grace,   the  grace  of  love.      It  should  not    be   difficult 
to  understand  the  value  which  the  Apostle  set  on  this 
feature  in  the  life  of  Churches,  how  he  longed  to  see  it, 
how  he  pressed  it  so  ardently  on  his  disciples.     Sin, 
dividing    men  from  God,   had  divided  them  also  from 
one  another,      k  introduced  selfishness,    self-seeking, 
self-worship,    self-assertion,    everything    that  tends  to 
divide.     It  rent  men  into  separate  interests,  societies, 
classes,    worships;   and   these  stood   over   against  one 
another   isolated,   jealous,    conflicting.     Men   had   long 
ago  ceased  to  think  it  possible  to  have  things  otherwise 
ordered.     They  had  almost  ceased  to  desire  it.     How 
eminently  then  did  the  glory  of  the  redemption  in  Christ 
appear  in  the  fact  that  by  it  the  dispersed  out  of  all  kinds 
of  dispersion  were  gathered  into  one.    They  were  bound 
to  one  another  as  well  as  to  Christ  :  they  became  more 
conscious   of    oneness    than    ever    they    had   been    of 
separation.     It  testified  to  the  presence   and  workmg 
of  Him  who  made  all,  and  from  whom  all,  by  different 
paths,  had  gone  astray. 

The  means  by  which  this  unity  was  to  be  maintained 
was  chiefly  the  prevalence  of  the  Christian  aftectioHS  in 
the  hearts  of  believers — the  presence  and  power  of  that 
mind  of  Christ,  of  which  more  must  be  said  in  connec- 
tion with  the  following  chapter.     Certainly  the  Apostle 


84  THE  EPISTLE    TO   THE  PHIUPPIANS, 

regards  this  as,  at  any  rate,  the  radical  security  for  unity 
in  life  and  work,  and  without  it  he  does  not  suppose 
the  unity  for  which  he  cares  can  exist  at  all.  In  this 
connection  it  is  worth  observing  that  the  unity  he  is 
thinking  of  is  chiefly  that  which  should  bind  together 
the  members  of  those  little  communities  which  were 
rising  up  in  various  places  under  his  ministry.  It  is 
the  harmony  of  those  whose  lot  is  cast  in  the  same 
place,  who  can  influence  one  another,  whose  plain 
business  it  was  to  confess  Christ  together.  Wider 
unity  was  supposed  indeed,  and  was  rejoiced  in;  but  the 
maintenance  of  it  had  not  yet  become  so  much  a  prac- 
tical question.  This  continued  to  be  the  case  for  some 
time  after  the  Apostolic  period.  Men  were  anxious  to 
hold  each  local  congregation  together,  and  to  avert 
local  splits  and  quarrels.  If  that  were  done,  it  seemed 
as  though  nothing  further  were  urgently  needed. 

Yet  the  same  principles  establish  the  unity  of  the 
visible  Church  throughout  the  world,  and  indicate  the 
discharge  of  the  duties  which  are  necessary  in  order  to 
the  expression  of  it.  Christians  differ  indeed  among 
themselves  upon  the  question  how  far  the  Church  has 
received  organic  institutions  fitted  to  give  expression  or 
embodiment  to  her  unity  ;  and  diversity  of  judgment  on 
that  point  is  not  likely  soon  to  be  removed.  For  the 
rest  the  main  thing  to  observe  is  that  Christ's  Church 
is  one,  in  root  and  principle.  This  applies  not  only  to 
the  Church  invisible,  but  to  the  Church  visible  too. 
Only  the  latter,  as  she  falls  short  in  all   service  and 


i. 27-30.]  UNDAUNTED  AND  UNITED  STEADFASTNESS.   ^ 

attainment,  falls  short  also  in  expressing  her  own  unity 
and  in  performing  the  duties  connected  with  it.  On  the 
one  hand  they  err  who  think  that  because  the  state  of 
the  visible  Church  is  marred  by  divisions,  therefore  unity 
in  her  case  is  a  dream,  and  that  the  unity  of  the  Church 
invisible  is  alone  to  be  asserted.  On  the  other  hand 
they  err  who,  on  much  the  same  grounds,  conclude 
that  only  one  of  the  organised  communions  can  possess 
the  nature  and  attributes  of  the  visible  Church  of 
Christ.  The  visible  Churches  are  imperfect  in  their 
unity  as  they  are  in  their  holiness.  In  both  respects 
their  state  is  neither  to  be  absolutely  condemned  nor 
to  be  absolutely  approved.  And  no  one  of  them  is 
entitled  to  throw  upon  the  rest  all  the  blame  of  the 
measure  of  disunion.  Any  one  that  does  so  becomes 
a  principal  fomenter  of  disunion. 

This  is  too  wide  a  subject  to  follow  further.  Mean- 
while it  may  be  gathered  from  what  has  been  said  that 
the  most  direct  application  of  the  Apostle's  language 
must  be,  not  to  the  mutual  relations  of  great  com- 
munions, but  to  the  mutual  relations  of  Christians 
in  the  same  local  society.  There  is  great  room  for 
such  an  application  of  it.  Exaggerated  statements  may 
sometimes  be  made  as  to  the  indifference  of  Christians 
in  modern  congregations  to  one  another's  weal  or  woe  ; 
but  certainly  very  often  self-will  and  bitter  feeling  are 
allowed  to  prevail,  as  if  the  tender  ties  and  solemn 
obligations  of  Christian  fellowship  had  been  forgotten. 
And  very  often  mutual  ignorance,  indifference,  or  silent 


86  THE  EPISTLE    TO    THE  PHHIPPIANS. 


aversion  mark  the  relations  of  those  who  have  wor- 
shipped God  together  for  long  years.  Certainly  there 
is  either  some  element  lacking  in  the  Christianity 
which  is  supposed  to  sustain  Church  life  of  this  kind, 
or  else  the  temperature  of  it  must  be  low.  Hence  it 
comes,  too,  that  the  edification  of  Christians  has  so 
largely  dissociated  itself  from  the  fellowship  of  the 
Churches  to  which  they  still  resort,  and  seeks  support 
on  other  lines.  It  was  not  so  in  those  earliest  Churches. 
The  life  and  growth  of  the  Christians  were  nursed  in 
the  Church  meetings.  There  they  gathered  to  read 
and  sing  and  pray  and  break  bread ;  to  strengthen 
one  another  against  Pagan  violence  and  seduction  ;  to 
love  one  another,  as  bound  together  by  ties  which 
Pagans  never  knew  ;  to  endure  together  the  scorn  and 
wrong  which  Christ's  name  might  bring  upon  them ; 
and  not  impossibly,  after  they  had  thus  fought  side  by 
side,  to  die  together  one  triumphant  martyr  death. 
Similar  conditions  have  more  or  less  returned  again 
whenever  the  Churches  have  been  tolerably  pure  and 
united,  and  have  at  the  same  time  been  subjected  to 
some  sharp  pressure  of  persecution. 

They  were  to  stand  fast  then  in  one  spirit,  cherishing 
that  "  spirit  of  the  mind  "  which  is  the  immediate  fruit 
of  the  working  of  the  One  Spirit  of  God,  the  common 
gift  of  the  Father.  It  is  supposed  that  Christians  know 
what  this  is  and  can  recognise  it.  But  they  might  not 
be  solicitous  enough  to  maintain  it,  and  they  might  be 
betrayed   into  preferring  a  spirit   of  their  own.     The 


i.  27-30.]  UNDAUNTED  AND  UNITED  STEADFASTNESS.   87 

Holy  Spirit's  influence,  creating  in  each  of  them  the 
new  spirit  of  the  mind,  would  be  the  key  to  right  conduct 
in  their  common  life.  It  would  inspire  a  purer  wisdom 
and  a  higher  motive  than  the  flesh  supplies.  Recognis- 
ing it  in  one  another,  they  would  find  themselves 
confirmed  and  cheered,  established  against  external 
opposition  and  internal  strife.  Too  easily  we  content 
ourselves  with  thoughts,  words,  and  deeds  which 
come  only  from  our  own.  private  "spirit"  and  which 
are  governed  by  that.  We  are  too  careless  of  living 
in  a  higher  region.  For  the  want  of  this  some  persons 
among  us  are  infidels.  They  think  they  can  account 
for  all  they  see  in  Christians  from  the  men's  own  spirit. 
Their  cavil  is  by  no  means  always  true  or  fair  ;  yet  it 
finds  too  much  plausible  support. 

The  same  unit}'  in  the  one  spirit,  wath  its  accom- 
panying vitality,  gladness,  and  courage,  was  to  charac- 
terise their  active  labours  in  the  gospel.  Let  it  be 
remembered  that  men  do  not  make  this  attainment  in 
a  moment  by  stepping  across  some  definite  line.  They 
grow  into  it  by  sincerity  of  aim,  and  by  steadfast 
endeavour  in  the  strength  of  Christ.  In  this  way  the 
"  fellowship  unto  the  gospel "  (ver.  5),  already  so 
happily  characteristic  of  the  Philippians,  was  to  grow 
yet  more  in  cordiality,  devotedness,  and  power. 

Meanwhile,  what  were  they  to  make  of  the  attacks 
directed  against  them  by  those  who  hated  the  gospel  ? 
This  was  no  doubt  a  very  practical  question.  Although 
persecution  of  the  Christians  had  not  yet  revealed  the 


88  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHHJPPIANS. 


energy  it  was  afterwards  to  assume,  their  lot  was  often 
hard  enough.  The  first  burst  of  trial  of  this  kind 
exerts  a  very  depressing  influence  on  some  minds : 
with  others  the  prolonged  endurance  of  it,  wearing  out 
the  spirit,  is  the  more  dangerous  experience.  Either 
way  the  dark  cloud  is  felt,  suddenly  or  gradually, 
shutting  out  the  sky.  This  feeling  of  depression  and 
dismay  is  to  be  steadfastly  resisted.  Enmity,  un- 
pleasant and  ominous  as  it  may  be,  is  not  to  perturb 
or  move  you.  It  is  not  to  be  regarded  as  a  reason  for 
depression  or  an  augury  of  defeat.  Far  otherwise : 
here  should  be  discerned  and  grasped  a  token  of 
salvation  given  by  God  Himself. 

It  has  been  said  that  earthly  prosperity  was  the 
promise  of  the  Old  Covenant,  but  adversity  that  of  the 
New.  This  is,  at  least,  so  far  true,  that  the  necessity 
and  benefit  of  chastening  are  very  plainly  set  before  us. 
Such  discipline  is  part  of  the  salvation  secured  for  us  ; 
it  is  necessary  to  lead  us  aright  to  final  well-being  ;  and 
it  will  be  administered  to  God's  children  as  He  sees  fit. 
When  it  comes,  it  does  not  necessarily  indicate  special 
Divine  displeasure,  still  less  Divine  ill-will.  It  does 
indicate  that  we  have  lessons  to  learn,  attainments  to 
make,  and  faults  to  be  purged  out ;  it  indicates  also 
that  God  is  taking  loving  pains  with  us  for  these  ends. 
All  these  things  ought  to  be  very  certain  to  Christians. 
Yet  some  Christians,  when  their  own  turn  comes,  find 
it  very  hard  to  believe  so  much.  Pains,  losses,  and 
disappointments,  coming  in  the  very  forms  they  most 


i.  27-30.]  UNDAUNTED  AND  UNITED  STEADFASTNESS.  S9 


deprecate,  wear  such  an  unfriendly  aspect,  that  they 
can  only  feel  scorched  and  affronted ;  and  the  hurt 
spirit  breaks  out  in  a  querulous  "Why?"  To  be  so 
thrown  off  our  balance  is  a  failure  of  faith. 

But  Paul  is  occupied  here  with  the  spirit  in  which 
one  special  form  of  trial  is  to  be  dealt  with.  Antipathy, 
contempt,  and  persecution  are  bitter,  very  bitter  to 
some  sensitive  souls  ;  but  when  they  come  upon  us  as 
followers  of  Christ,  and  for  His  sake,  they  have  a  con- 
solation proper  to  themselves.  They  are  to  be  borne 
gladly,  not  only  because  all  chastening  is  guided  by 
fatherly  love  and  wisdom,  but  because  this  kind  of 
suffering  is  our  glory.  It  comes  to  believers  as  part  of 
their  fellowship  with  Christ ;  and  it  is  such  a  part 
of  that  fellowship  as  carries  with  it  a  peculiar  power  of 
assurance  and  confirmation.  Christians  share  with 
Christ  the  enmity  of  the  world's  unbelief,  because 
they  share  with  Him  the  knowledge  and  love  of  the 
Father.  If,  indeed,  by  indulging  self-will  and  passion 
(though  perhaps  under  religious  forms)  we  bring  enmity 
on  ourselves,  then  we  suffer  as  evil-doers.  But  if  we 
suffer  for  righteousness,  the  Spirit  of  glory  and  of  God 
rests  upon  us.  Some  share  of  suffering  for  Christ 
comes,  therefore,  as  God's  gift  to  His  children,  and 
ought  to  be  valued  accordingly. 

As  to  the  exact  point  of  the  Apostle's  remark  on  the 
**  token  "  of  perdition  and  of  salvation,  two  views  may  be 
taken.  In  the  line  of  what  has  just  been  said,  he  may 
be  understood  to  mean  simply  that  when  God  allows 


90  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PmUPPIANS. 


believers  to  suffer  persecution  for  Christ's  sake,  it  is  a 
sign  of  their  salvation ;  just  as,  on  the  contrary,  to  be 
found  opposing  and  persecuting  God's  children  is  a  sign 
and  omen  of  destruction.  As  if  he  said  :  "  It  is  not  you 
but  they  who  have  cause  to  be  terrified  :  for  lo  !  thine 
enen>ies,  O  Lord,  for  lo  !  thine  enemies  shall  perish." 

This  is  a  scriptural  view.  Yet  both  here  and  in 
2  Thess.  i.  6  it  is  perhaps  more  precise  to  say  that  for 
the  Apostle  the  special  sign  of  salvation  on  the  one  side, 
and  destruction  on  the  other,  is  the  patience  and  calm- 
ness with  which  Christians  are  enabled  to  endure 
their  trials.  This  patience,  while  it  is  a  desirable 
attainment  on  their  part,  is  also  something  secured 
for  them  and  given  to  them  by  their  Lord.  It  is 
very  precious  and  should  be  earnestly  embraced.  In 
this  view  the  Apostle  says  :  "  In  no  wise  be  terrified 
by  your  adversaries ;  and  this  tranquillity  of  yours 
shall  be  a  sign,  on  the  one  part,  of  your  salvation,  and 
also,  on  the  other  part,  if  they  repent  not,  of  their  de- 
struction. For  this  tranquillity  is  a  victory  given  to  you 
by  God,  which  endures  when  their  malice  is  exhausted. 
Does  it  not  tell  of  a  power  working  for  you  which 
mocks  their  malice,  a  power  which  is  well  able  to 
perfect  your  salvation  as  well  as  to  overthrow  the 
enemies  of  God  ?  So  you  find  coming  into  experience 
that  which  beforehand  was  given  you  by  promise. 
It  zvas  given  you  to  believe  in  Christ,  and  also  to 
suffer  for  Him.  Now  that  you  find  yourselves  enabled 
to  suffer  for  Him  so  calmly,  will  not  that  become  a  sign 


i.  27-30.]   UNDAUNTED  AND  UNITED  STEADFASTNESS.  91 


to  confirm  all  you  have  believed  ? "  For  the  tran- 
quillity of  spirit  into  which  faith  rises  under  persecution 
is  an  evidence  of  the  source  from  which  it  comes. 
Much  may  be  borne  by  resolute  men  for  any  cause  in 
which  they  have  embarked.  But  very  different  from 
this  striving  of  the  human  heart  hardening  itself  to  bear, 
in  order  that  an  enemy's  malice  may  not  spy  out  its 
weakness,  are  the  calmness  and  patience  given  to  God's 
children  in  the  hour  of  trial.  That  bespeaks  an  inward 
support  more  mighty  than  all  sorrow.  The  Divineness 
of  it  becomes  still  more  conspicuous  when  it  approves 
itself  as  the  One  Spirit,  triumphing  in  persons  of 
diverse  tempers  and  characters.  This  has  been  a  sign 
to  many  an  unbeliever  filling  him  with  rage  and  fear. 
And  to  the  children  of  God  it  has  been  the  Spirit  wit- 
nessing with  their  spirit  that  they  are  His  children. 

The  Apostle  will  not  allow  it  to  be  overlooked  that 
in  this  point  as  in  others  his  Philippian  friends  and 
he  are  tied  together  in  closest  fellowship.  This  con- 
flict of  theirs  is  the  same  which  they  had  heard  of 
and  seen  as  proceeding  in  his  case  too.  Perhaps  we 
may  say  of  this  that  it  admonishes  us  not  to  think 
too  meanly  of  our  own  Christian  experience,  and  of 
the  questions  and  decisions  which  it  involves.  The 
Apostle  knew  that  his  Philippian  friends  regarded  his 
conflict  as  something  conspicuous  and  great.  He  was 
a  standard  bearer,  on  whom  much  depended  ;  and  then, 
all  the  movements  of  his  soul  were  magnanimous  and 
grand.     But  their  own  experience  might  seem  petty — 


92  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


almost  mean  ;  their  trials  not  very  serious,  and  their 
way  of  dealing  with  them  at  times  so  halting  and  half- 
hearted, that  it  seemed  an  offence  against  humility  to 
make  much  account  of  them.  If  this  was  the  true  view, 
then  also  it  must  be  Christ's  view ;  and  so  a  very 
depressed  way  of  looking  at  their  calling  and  their 
encouragements  might  set  in.  The  Apostle  will  not 
allow  this.  He  thinks,  and  they  are  to  think,  that  it 
is  the  same  question  that  is  being  fought  out  in  their 
case  as  in  his — the  same  forces  are  arrayed  against 
one  another  in  both  cases — and  the  victory  in  both  cases 
will  be  equally  momentous.  So  he  would  quicken  their 
sense  of  the  situation  by  the  energy  and  vivacity  of  his 
own  convictions.  It  is  unquestionable  that  Christians 
suffer  much  loss  by  indulging  a  certain  bastard  humility, 
which  leads  them  to  underrate  the  solemnity  of  the 
interest  attaching  to  their  own  history.  This  renders 
them  inattentive  to  the  serious  eyes  with  which  Christ 
their  Master  is  looking  down  upon  it. 


THE  MIND   OF  CHRIST. 


93 


'  "  If  there  is  therefore  any  comfort  in  Christ,  if  any  consolation  of 
love,  if  any  fellowship  of  the  Spirit,  if  any  tender  mercies  and  com- 
passions, fulfil  ye  my  joy,  that  ye  be  of  the  same  mind,  having  the 
same  love,  being  of  one  accord,  of  one  mind ;  doing  nothing  through 
faction  or  through  vainglory,  but  in  lowliness  of  mind  each  counting 
other  better  than  himself;  not  looking  each  of  you  to  his  own  things, 
but  each  of  you  also  to  the  things  of  others." — Phil.  ii.  1-4  (R.V.). 


94 


CHAPTER   VI. 

THE  MIND   OF  CHRIST. 

IN  the  verses  last  considered  the  Apostle  had  begun 
to  summon  his  Philippian  friends  to  Christian 
duty.  But  so  far  his  words  bear  the  character  only  of 
occasional  exhortation,  which  falls  naturally  in  as  he 
dwells  upon  his  own  circumstances  and  on  theirs. 
Associated  as  they  have  been  and  are,  let  there  be  no 
mistake  as  to  the  central  bond  between  him  and  them. 
Let  the  Philippian  believers  partake  increasingly  in  his 
own  glowing  apprehensions  of  the  Christian  calling. 
Let  them  abound  in  the  loving,  steadfast,  energetic,  ex- 
pectant life  in  which  men  are  united  who  have  become 
acquainted  with  Christ. 

But  he  thinks  fit  to  press  the  theme  in  a  more  set 
and  deliberate  way.  For  it  is  no  light  thing  to  awaken 
in  men's  hearts  a  right  impression  of  what  it  is  to  be  a 
Christian ;  or  if  it  has  been  awakened,  to  nurse  it  to 
due  strength.  These  Christians  possessed  some  in- 
sight into  the  world  of  truth  which  held  the  mind  of 
Paul ;  they  had  some  experience  of  evangelical  im- 
pression :  in  these  things  they  had  a  happy  fellowship 

95 


96  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHHIPPIANS. 

with  one  another  and  with  their  great  teacher.  But 
all  this  must  be  affirmed  and  embodied  in  the  conflict 
and  ministry  of  Christian  life.  It  must  prove  strong 
enough  for  that.  Deeds  are  the  true  confession  of  our 
faith ;  they  are  the  verification  of  our  religious  ex- 
perience. And  in  this  practical  form  we  must  overcome, 
not  the  temptations  of  other  people  or  other  ages,  but 
our  own.  There  is  no  more  dangerous  working  of 
unbelief  than  that  in  which  it  never  questions  the 
doctrinal  theory,  but  renders  our  Christianity  cold  and 
slack,  and  leads  us  to  indulge  a  preference  for  a  religion 
that  goes  easy.  Could  we  but  see  as  we  are  seen,  we 
should  find  this  to  be  a  matter  of  endless  lamentation. 

Temptations  to  rivalry  and  discord  were  working 
at  Philippi.  We  are  not  obliged  to  think  that  they 
had  gone  very  far;  but  one  could  see  a  risk  that 
they  might  go  further.  The  Apostle  has  it  in  his  heart 
to  expel  this  evil,  by  promoting  the  principles  and 
dispositions  that  are  opposed  to  it.  And  in  this  work 
the  Philippians  themselves  must  embark  with  all  their 
might. 

It  has  been  remarked  already  that  causes  are  easily 
found  to  account  for  rivalries  and  misunderstandings 
springing  up  in  those  primitive  Christian  congregations. 
The  truth  is,  however,  that  in  all  ages  and  conditions 
of  the  Church  these  dangers  are  nigh  at  hand.  •  Self-' 
seeking  and  self-exaltation  are  forms  in  which  sin 
works  most  easily,  and  out  of  these  come  rivalry  and 
discord  by  the  very  nature  of  the  case.     Eager  grasping 


ii.  1  4.]  Tin:  MIND   OF  CHRIST.  97 


at  our  own  objects  leads  to  disregard  of  the  rights  and 
interests  of  others  ;  and  thence  come  wars.  Danger  in 
this  direction  was  visible  to  the  Apostle. 

It  may  be  asked  how  this  should  be,  if  the  Philippians 
were    genuine    and    hearty    Christians,    such    as   the 
Apostle's   commendations    bespeak    them  ?      Here    a 
principle  comes  to  light  which  deserves  to  be  considered. 
Even  those  who  have  cordially  embraced  Christianity, 
and  who  have  loyally  given  effect  to  it  in  some  of  its 
outstanding  applications,  are  wonderfully  prone  to  stop 
short.     They  do  not  perceive,  or  they  do  not  care  to 
realise,  the  bearing  of  the  same  principles,  which  they 
have  already  embraced,  upon  whole  regions  of  human 
life  and  human  character  ;  they  do  not  seriously  lay  to 
heart  the  duties  Christianity  imposes  or   the  faults  it 
rebukes  in  those   departments.     They   are   pleased   to 
have  won  so  much  ground,  and  do  not  think  about  the 
Canaanites  that  still  hold  their  ground.     So,   in  whole 
regions  of  life,  the  carnal  mind  is  allowed  to  work  on, 
undetected  and  practically  unopposed.  •  This  tendency 
is  aided  by   the  facility  we   have  in   disguising    from 
ourselves  the  true  character  of  dispositions  and  actions, 
when  these  do  not  quite  plainly  affront  Christian  rules. 
Self-assertion   and   bad  temper,   for  example,   can  put 
on  the  character  of  honest  firmness  and  hearty  zeal. 
More  particularly,  when  religious  principles  have  led 
us  into  certain  lines  of  action,  we  are  apt  to  take  for 
granted  that  all  is  right  we  do  in  those  Hnes.     Religious 
zeal  leads  a  man  to  take  trouble  and  incur  responsibility 

7 


98  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHHJPPIANS. 

in  Church  work.  Under  this  notion,  then,  he  readily 
persuades  himself  that  all  his  Church  work  is  conscien- 
tious and  disinterested :  yet  it  may  be  largely  and 
deeply  tainted  with  the  impulses  of  the  fleshly  mind. 
In  a  measure  it  might  be  so  here.  The  Philippians 
might  be  generally  a  company  of  sincerely  Christian 
people.  And  yet  the  churchmanship  of  some  of  them 
might  disclose  sad  tokens  of  selfishness  and  bitterness. 
Therefore  they  must  be  called  to  give  heed  to  the 
principles  and  to  give  effect  to  the  motives  that  expel 
those  sins. 

In  all  this  we  may  feel  ourselves  in  the  region  of 
commonplaces;  we  know  it  all  so  well.  But  the  very 
point  in  hand  is  that  for  the  Apostle  these  are  not 
commonplaces.  He  is  greatly  in  earnest  about  the 
matter,  and  his  heart  is  full  of  it.  We  do  not  under- 
stand him  until  we  begin  to  sympathise  with  his  sorrow 
and  his  anxiety.  This  is  for  him  no  mere  matter  of 
expediencies  or  of  appearances.  He  is  striving  for  the 
victory  of  grace  in  the  souls  of  his  beloved  friends  ;  for 
the  glory  of  Christ ;  for  his  own  comfort  and  success  as 
Christ's  minister.  All  these  are,  as  it  were,  at  stake 
upon  this  question  of  the  Hfe  of  the  Philippian  Church 
proving  to  be,  under  the  influence  of  Christ,  lowly, 
loving,  and  answerable  to  the  gospel. 

No  one  more  than  Paul  appreciates  the  value  of 
good  theological  principles  ;  and  no  one  more  than  he 
lays  stress  on  the  mercy  which  provides  a  gracious  and 
a  full  salvation.     But  no  one  more  than  he  is  intent 


ii    I -4. J  THE  MIND   OF  CHRIST.  99 


upon  Christian  practice  :  for  if  practice  is  not  healed 
and  quickened,  then  salvation  ceases  to  be  real,  the 
promises  wither  unfulfilled,  Christ  has  failed.  We 
may  well  feel  it  to  be  a  great  question  whether  our  own 
sympathy  with  him  on  such  points  is  growing  and 
deepening.  The  Kingdom  of  God  within  us  must  exist 
in  a  light  and  love  for  which  goodness  is  a  necessity, 
and  evil  a  grief  and  heart-break.  But  if  it  is  not  so 
with  us,  where  do  we  stand  ? 

In  four  clauses  the  Apostle  appeals  to  great  Christian 
motives,  which  are  to  give  strength  to  his  main  appeal — 
*'  If  there  be  any  comfort  (or  store  of  cheering  counsel) 
in  Christ  Jesus,  if  any  consolation  of  love,  if  any  fellow- 
ship of  the  Spirit,  if  any  tender  mercies  or  com- 
passions " ;  in  a  fifth  clause  he  draws  a  motive  from 
the  regard  they  might  have  for  his  own  most  earnest 
desires — "fulfil  ye  my  joy"  ;  and  then  comes  the  ex- 
hortation itself,  which  is  to  unity  of  mind  and  heart — 
"that  ye  be  of  the  same  mind,  having  the  same  love, 
being  of  one  accord,  of  one  mind."  This,  in  turn,  is 
followed  by  clauses  that  fix  the  practical  sense  of  the 
general  exhortation. 

It  has  been  made  a  question  whether  the  Apostle 
means  to  say,  ''  If  there  be  among  you,  Philippians, 
influences  and  experiences  such  as  these,"  or  "  If  there 
be  anywhere  in  the  Church  of  God."  But  surely  he 
means  both.  He  appeals  to  great  practical  articles  of 
faith  and  matters  of  experience.  The  Church  of  God 
believes  them  and  claims  a  part  in  them.     So  does  the 


lOo  THE  EPISTLE    TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

Church  of  Philippi,  in  its  degree.  But  there  may  be  a 
great  deal  more  in  them  than  the  Philippian  believers 
are  aware  of, — more  in  them  as  truths  and  promises ; 
more  in  them  as  contemplated  and  realised  by  riper 
Christians,  like  Paul  himself.  He  appeals,  certainly,  to 
what  existed  for  the  faith  of  the  PhiUppians ;  but  also  to 
that  ''much  more"  which  might  open  to  Ihem  if  their 
faith  was  enlarged. 

The  "  comfort  "  or  cheering  counsel  "  in  Christ  "  is  the 
fulness  of  gospel  help  and  promise.  Great  need  of  this 
is  owned  by  all  believers  ;  and,  coming  as  needed  succour 
to  them  all,  it  may  well  bind  them  all  together  in  the 
sense  of  common  need  and  common  help.  As  it  comes 
from  the  good  Shepherd  Himself  to  all  and  each,  so  it 
is  conceived  to  be  ever  sounding  in  the  Church,  passing 
from  one  believer  to  another,  addressed  by  each  to 
each  as  common  succour  and  common  comfort.  Hence, 
in  the  next  place,  there  comes  into  view  the  mutual 
ministry  of  "  consolation  "  which  Christians  owe  to  one 
another,  since  they  "  receive  "  one  another,  and  are  to 
do  to  one  another  as  Christ  has  done  to  them.  Here 
the  consolation  acquires  a  special  character,  from  the 
individual  affection  and  friendship  breathed  into  it 
by  the  Christian,  who  carries  it  to  his  neighbour  to 
encourage  and  cheer  him  on  his  way.  This  love  of 
the  Christian  to  his  brother,  which  comes  from  God,  is 
itself  a  means  of  grace  ;  and  therefore  the  ''  consolation 
of  love  "  deserves  to  be  distinctly  named. 

The  "fellowship  of  the  Spirit"  (see  2  Cor.  xiii.  13) 


ii.  1-4.]  THE  MIND   OF  CHRIST.  loi 


is  the  common  participation  of  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God 
in  His  gracious  presence  and  working.  Without  this 
no  one  could  have  a  real  share  in  Christian  benefits. 
The  Spirit  reveals  to  us  the  Son  and  the  Father,  and 
enables  us  to  abide  in  the  Son  and  in  the  Father.  He 
brings  us  into  communion  with  the  mind  of  God  as 
revealed  in  His  word.  He  makes  real  to  us  the  things 
of  the  Kingdom  of  God  ;  and  it  is  He  who  opens  to  us 
their  worth  and  sweetness,  especially  the  lovingkind- 
ness  which  breathes  in  them  all.  Through  Him  we 
are  enabled  to  exercise  Christian  affections,  desires,  and 
serv'ices.  It  is  He,  in  a  word,  through  whom  we  are 
participant  in  the  life  of  salvation ;  and  in  that  life  He 
associates  together  all  who  share  His  indwelling.  The 
Apostle  supposes  that  no  Christian  could  ever  contem- 
plate without,  shall  we  say,  a  pang  of  gratitude,  the 
condescension,  the  gentleness,  and  the  patience  of  this 
ministration.  And  as  all  Christians  are  recipient  together 
of  so  immense  a  benefit,  they  might  well  feel  it  as  a  bond 
between  them  all.  But  more  especially,  as  the  Holy 
Spirit  in  this  dispensation  evinces  a  most  Divine  love 
and  kindness — for  what  but  love  could  be  the  spring  of 
it  ? — so  also  the  upshot  of  all  His  work  is  the  revelation 
of  God  in  love.  For  love  is  at  the  heart  of  all  God's 
promises  and  benefits  :  they  are  never  understood  until 
we  reach  the  love  that  is  in  them.  And  God  is  love. 
So  the  love  of  God  is  shed  abroad  in  the  hearts  of 
believers  through  the  Holy  Spirit  given  to  them. 
Hence  this  is  the  leading  view  of  that  which  the  Spirit 


102  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

comes  to  do :  He  comes  to  make  us  members  of  a 
system  in  which  love  rules  ;  and  He  inspires  all  loving 
affections  and  dispositions  proper  to  make  us  con- 
gruous members  of  so  high  and  good  a  world. 

Therefore,  in  the  fourth  place,  it  is  to  be  supposed 
that  "  tender  mercies  and  compassions "  in  human 
breasts  are  abundant  where  the  fellowship  of  the  Spirit 
is.  How  abundant  they  might  be  :  surely  also  in  some 
measure  they  must  be  present ;  they  must  abound,  amid 
all  human  infirmities  and  mistakes.  All  kinds  of  gentle, 
friendly,  faithful,  wise,  and  patient  dispositions  might 
be  expected.  They  are  the  fruits  of  the  country  in 
which  Christians  have  come  to  dwell. 

To  all  these  the  Apostle  appeals.  Perhaps  a  pathos 
is  audible  in  the  form  of  his  appeal.  "  If  there  be  any." 
Alas  !  is  there  then  any  ?  Is  there  some  at  least,  if  not 
much  ?  For  if  all  these  had  been  duly  present  to  the 
faith  and  in  the  life  of  the  Church,  they  would  have 
spoken  their  lesson  for  themselves,  and  had  not  needed 
Paul  to  speak  for  them. 

The  form  of  appeal  "  Fulfil  ye  my  joy  "  brings  up 
one  more  motive — the  earnest  desires  of  one  who  loved 
them  wisely  and  well,  and  whom  they,  whatever  their 
shortcomings,  loved  in  turn.  It  is  worth  observing  that 
the  motive  power  here  does  not  lie  merely  in  the  con- 
sideration "  Would  you  not  like  to  give  me  pleasure  ?  " 
The  Philippians  knew  how  Paul  had  at  heart  their  true 
welfare  and  their  true  dignity.  That  which,  if  it  came 
to  pass,  would  so  gladden  him,  must  be  something  great 


ii.  1-4.]  THE  MIND   OF  CHRIST.  103 


and  good  for  them.  If  their  own  judgment  of  things 
was  cold,  might  it  not  take  fire  from  the  contagion  of 
his  ?  The  loving  solicitude  of  a  keener-sighted  and  a 
more  single-hearted  Christian,  the  solicitude  which 
makes  his  heart  throb  and  his  voice  tremble  as  he 
speaks,  has  often  startled  slumbering  brethren  into  a 
consciousness  of  their  own  insensibility,  and  awakened 
them  to  worthier  outlooks. 

In  regard  to  all  these  considerations,  the  main  point 
is  to  catch  sight  of  the  moral  and  spiritual  scenery  as 
the  Apostle  saw  it.     Otherwise  the  words  may  leave  us 
as  dull  as  they  found  us.     For  him  there  had  come  into 
view  a  wonderful  world  of  love.     Love  had  come  forth 
preparing  at  great   cost  and  with  great   pains   a  new 
destiny  for  men.     Love  had  brought  in   Paul  and  the 
other   believers,  one   by  one,  into   this   higher  region. 
And  it  proved  to  be  a  region  in  which  love  was  the 
ground  on  which  they  stood,  and  love  the  heaven  over 
their'heads,  and  love  the  air  they  breathed.     And  here 
love    was    coming    to  be    their  own   new  nature,  love 
responsive  to  the  love  of  Father,  Son,  and  Spirit,  and 
love  going  out  from    those  who  had   been  so  blessed 
to  bless  and  gladden  others.     This  was  the  true,  the 
eternal  goodness,  the  true,  the  eternal  blessedness;  and 
it  was  theirs.     This  was  what  faith  embraced  in  Him 
"  who  loved  me  and  gave  Himself  for  me."     This  was 
what  faith  claimed  right  to  be  and  do.     If  this  was  not 
so,  Christianity  was  reduced  to  nothing.     If  a  man  have 
not  love,  he  is  nothing  (i   Cor.  xiii.).     *' Is  there  any 


104  THE  EPISTLE    TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

truth  at  all  in  this  glorious  faith  of  ours  ?  Do  you 
believe  it  at  all  ?  Have  you  felt  it  at  all  ?  Fulfil  then 
my  joy."  Unity  of  mind  and  of  heart  is  the  thing 
inculcated.  Under  the  influence  of  the  great  objects  of 
faith  and  of  the  motive  forces  of  Christianity  this  was 
to  be  expected.  Their  ways  of  thinking  and  their  ways 
of  feeling,  however  different,  should  be  so  moulded  in 
Christ  as  to  reach  full  mutual  understanding  and  full 
mutual  affection.  Nor  should  they  rest  contented 
when  either  of  these  failed  :  for  that  would  be  content- 
ment with  defeat ;  but  Christ's  followers  are  to  aim  at 
victory. 

It  is  obvious  to  say  here  that  cases  might  arise  in 
which  turbulent  or  contentious  persons  might  make  it 
impossible  for  the  rest  of  the  Church,  however  well  dis- 
posed, to  secure  either  one  accord  or  one  mind.  But 
the  Apostle  does  not  suppose  that  case  to  have  arisen. 
Nothing  had  occurred  at  Philippi  which  Christian 
sense  and  Christian  feeling  might  not  arrange.  When 
the  case  supposed  does  occur,  there  are  Christian  ways 
of  dealing  with  it.  Still  more  obviously  one  might  say 
that  conscientious  differences  of  opinion,  and  that  even 
on  matters  of  moment,  must  inevitably  occur  sooner  or 
later  ;  and  a  general  admonition  to  be  of  one  mind  does 
not  meet  such  a  case.  Perhaps  it  may  be  said  in  reply 
that  the  Church  and  the  Christians  have  hardly  conceived 
how  much  might  be  attained  in  the  way  of  agreement  if 
our  Christianity  were  sincere  enough,  thorough  enough, 
and  affectionate    enough.     In    that    case    there    might 


ii.  1-4.]  THE  MIND   OF  CHRIST.  105 


be  wonderful  attainment  in  finding  agreement,  and  in 
dismissing  questions  on  which  it  is  not  needful  to  agree. 
Biit,  if  we  are  not  to  soar  so  high  as  this,  it  may  at 
least  be  said  that,  while  conscientious  diversities  of  judg- 
ment are  not  to  be  disguised,  they  may  be  dealt  with, 
among  believers,  in  a  Christian  way,  with  due  emphasis- 
ing of  the  truth  agreed  upon,  and  with  a  prevailing 
determination  to  speak  truth  in  love.  Here  again, 
however,  the  Apostle  recognises  no  serious  difficulty  of 
this  kind  at  Philippi.  The  difficulties  were  such  as 
could  be  got  over.  There  was  no  good  reason  why 
the  Philippians  should  not. in  their  Church  life  exhibit 
harmony  :  it  would  be  so,  if  Christian  influences  were 
cordially  admitted  into  minds  and  hearts,  and  if  they 
made  a  fit  estimate  of  the  supreme  importance  of  unity 
in  Christ.  The  same  thing  may  be  said  of  innumerable 
cases  in  later  times  in  which  Christians  have  divided 
and  contended.  It  is  right  to  say,  however,  that  these 
considerations  are  not  to  be  applied  without  qualification 
to  all  kinds  and  degrees  of  separation  between  Chris- 
tians. It  is  a  cause  for  sorrow  that  denominational 
divisions  are  so  many ;  and  they  have  often  been  both 
cause  and  consequence  of  unchristian  feeling.  Yet 
when  men  part  peaceably  to  follow  out  their  deliberate 
convictions,  to  which  they  cannot  give  effect  together, 
and  when  in  doing  so  they  do  not  unchurch  or  condemn 
one  another,  there  may  be  less  offence  against  Christian 
charity  than  in  cases  where  a  communion,  professedly 
one,  is  the  scene  of  bitterness  and  strife.     In    either 


io6  THE  EPISTLE    TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

case  indeed  there  is  something  to  regret  and  probably 
something  to  blame ;  but  the  former  of  the  two  cases  is 
by  no  means  necessarily  the  worse. 

In  following  out  the  line  of  duty  and  privilege  set 
before  them  by  the  Apostle,  Christians  have  to  get  the 
better  of  arrogance  and  selfishness  (vv.  3,  4). 

In  the  Church  of  Christ  no  man  has  a  right  to  do 
anything  from  a  spirit  of  strife  or  vainglory.     Strife  is 
the  disposition  to  oppose  and  thwart  our  neighbour's 
will,  either  from  mere  delight  in  contest,  or  in  order  to 
assert  for  our  own  will  a  prevalence  which  will  gratify 
our    pride ;     and    this    is    the    animating    principle    of 
"faction."     *' Vainglory"  is    the   disposition    to    think 
highly  of  ourselves,  to  claim  for  ourselves  a  great  place, 
and  to  assert  it  as  against  the  claims  of  others.     In  the 
jostle  of  the  world   it  may  perhaps  be   admitted  that 
forces  acting  on  these  lines  are  not  without  their  use. 
They  compensate  one  another,  and  some  measure  of 
good  emerges  from  their  unlovely  energies.     But  such 
things  are  out  of  place  among  Christians,  for  they  are 
right  against  the  spirit  of  Christianity  ;  and  Christianity 
relies  for  its  equipoise  and  working  progress  on  prin- 
ciples of  quite  another  kind.     Among  Christians  each 
is  to  be  lowly-minded,  conscious  of  his   own   defects 
and  of  his  ill-desert.     And  this  is  to  work  in  the  way 
of  our  esteeming  others   to  be  better  than   ourselves. 
For  we   are  conscious  of  our  own  inward   and  deep 
defect  as  we  cannot  be  of  any  other  person's.     And  it 
is  abundantly  possible  that  others  may  be  better  than 


ii.  1-4.]  THE   MIND   OF  CHRIST.  107 

we  are,  and  safe  for  us  to  give  full  effect  to  that  possi- 
bility. It  is  said,  indeed,  that  we  may  possibly  have 
conclusive  reason  to  believe  that  certain  other  persons, 
even  in  Christ's  Church,  are  worse  than  we  are.  But, 
apart  from  the  precariousness  of  such  judgments,  it  is 
enough  to  say  it  is  not  for  us  to  proceed  on  such  a 
judgment  or  to  give  effect  to  it.  We  all  await  a  higher 
judgment  ;  until  then  it  becomes  us  to  take  heed  to  our 
own  spirit  and  walk  in  lowliness  of  mind. 

Selfishness  ("  looking  to  its  own  things,"  ver.  4),  as 
well  as  arrogance,   needs  to   be  resisted ;    and  this  is 
an  even  more  pervading  and  inward  evil.      In  dealing 
with  it  we  are  not  required  to  have  no  eye  at  all  to 
our  own  things  ;  for  indeed  they  are  our  providential 
charge,    and    they    must    be    cared    for ;     but    we    are 
required  to  look  not  only  on  our  own,  but  every  man 
on   the  things   of  others.     We  have   to  learn   to  put 
ourselves  in  another's  place,  to  recognise  how   things 
affect  him,  to  sympathise  with  his  natural  feelings  in 
reference  to  them,   and   to  give  effect   in   speech  and 
conduct  to  the  impressions  hence  arising.     So  a  Chris- 
tian man  is  to  "love  his  neighbour  as  himself" — only 
with  a  tenderer  sense  of  obligation  and  a  consciousness 
of  more  constraining  motive  than  could  be  attained  by 
the  Israelite  of  old.     Lovingly  to  do  right  to  a  brother's 
claims  and  to  his  welfare  should  be  as  cogent  a  prin- 
ciple of  action  with  us  as  to  care  for  our  own. 

Arrogance    and    selfishness — perhaps    disguised    in 
fairer   forms — had    bred   the    disturbance   at    Philippi. 


io8  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


The  same  baleful  forces  are  present  everywhere  in  all 
the  Churches  to  this  day,  and  have  often  run  riot  in 
the  House  of  God.  How  shall  the  ugliness  and  the 
hatefulness  of  the  every-day  selfishness,  the  every- 
day self-assertion,  the  every-day  strifes  of  Christians, 
be  impressed  upon  our  minds  ?  How  are  we  to  be 
awakened  to  our  true  calling  in  lowliness  and  in  love  ? 


THE  MIND   OF  CHRIST  {Continued), 


109 


**  Have  this  mind  in  you,  which  was  also  in  Christ  Jesus :  who, 
being  in  the  form  of  God,  counted  it  not  a  prize  to  be  on  an  equality 
with  God,  but  emptied  Himself,  taking  the  form  of  a  servant,  being 
made  in  the  likeness  of  men;  and  being  found  in  fashion  as  a  man, 
He  humbled  Himself,  becoming  obedient  even  unto  death,  yea,  the 
death  of  the  cross.  Wherefore  also  God  highly  exalted  Him,  and  gave 
unto  Him  the  name  which  is  above  every  name ;  that  in  the  name  of 
Jesus  every  knee  should  bow,  of  things  in  heaven  and  things  on  earth 
and  things  under  the  earth,  and  that  every  tongue  should  confess 
that  Jesus  Christ  is  Lord,  to  the  glory  of  God  the  Father." — Phil. 
ii.  5-II  (R.V.J. 


tio 


CHAPTER   VII. 

THE  MIND   OF  CHRIST   {Continued). 

IT  proves  hard  to  make  us  aware  of  the  sin  and  the 
misery  involved  in  the  place  commonly  allowed  to 
Self.  Some  of  its  conspicuous  outrages  on  Christian 
decency  we  do  disapprove  and  avoid  :  perhaps  we  have 
embarked  in  a  more  serious  resistance  to  its  domina- 
tion. Yet,  after  all,  how  easily  and  how  complacently 
do  we  continue  to  give  scope  to  it !  In  forms  of  self- 
assertion,  of  arrogance,  of  eager  and  grasping  competi- 
tion, it  breaks  out.  It  does  so  in  ordinary  hfe,  in  what 
is  called  public  life,  and,  where  it  is  most  offensive  of  all, 
in  Church  life.  Hence  we  fail  so  much  in  readiness  to 
make  the  case  of  others  our  own,  and  to  be  practically 
moved  by  their  interests,  rights,  and  claims.  There 
are  certainly  great  differences  here ;  and  some,  in 
virtue  of  natural  sympathy  or  Christian  grace,  attain 
to  remarkable  degrees  of  generous  service.  Yet  these 
also,  if  they  know  themselves,  know  how  energetically 
self  comes  upon  the  field,  and  how  much  ground  it 
covers.  Many  among  us  are  domg  good  to  others ; 
but  does  it  never  strike  us  that  there  is  a  distant  and 


112  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHIPPIANS. 


arrogant  way  of  doing  good  ?  Many  in  Cliristian 
society  are  kind,  and  that  is  well ;  but  undoubtedly 
there  are  self-indulgent  ways  of  being  kind. 

Having  to  deal  with  this  evil  energy  of  self,  the  Apostle 
turns  at  once  to  the  central  truth  of  Christianity,  the 
person   of  Christ.     Here   he   finds    the    type  set,   the 
standard  fixed,  of  what  Christianity  is  and  means  :  or 
rather,  here    he  finds  a  great  fountain,  from  which  a 
mighty  stream  proceeds ;  and  before  it  all  the  forms  of 
self-worship  must  be  swept  away.     In    bringing  this 
out  the  Apostle  makes  a  most  remarkable  statement 
regarding  the  Incarnation  and  the  history  of  our  Lord. 
He   reveals,  at  the  same  time,  the  place  in  his  own 
mind  held  by  the  thought  of  Christ  coming  into  the 
world,  and  the  influence  that  thought  had  exerted  on 
the  formation  of  his  character.     He  bids  us  recognise 
in   Christ  the  supreme  exemplification  of  one  who  is 
looking  away    from   his  own  things — whose  mind   is 
filled,  whose  action  is  inspired  by  concern  for  others. 
This  is  so  at  the  root  of  the  interposition  of  Christ  to 
save   us,   that    the   principle   becomes    imperative  and 
supreme  for  all  Christ's  followers. 

We  have  to  consider  the  facts  as  they  presented 
themselves  to  the  mind  of  Paul,  according  to  the 
wisdom  given  to  him,  that  we  may  estimate  the  motive 
which  he  conceives  them  to  reveal,  and  the  obligation 
which  is  thus  laid  upon  all  who  name  the  name  of 
Christ  and  take  rank  among  His  followers. 

The  Apostle,  let  us  first  observe,  speaks  of  the  In- 


ii.  5-II.]  THE  MIND   OF  CHRIST.  113 

carnation  as  that  reveals  itself  to  us,  as  it  offers  itself 
to  the  contemplation  of  men.  To  involve  himself  in 
discussion  of  inner  mysteries  concerning  the  Divine 
nature  and  the  human,  and  the  manner  of  their  union, 
as  these  are  known  to  God,  is  not,  and  could  not,  be 
his  object.  The  mysteries  must  be  asserted,  but  much 
about  them  is  to  continue  unexplained.  He  is  to  ap- 
peal to  the  impression  derivable,  as  he  maintains,  from 
the  plainest  statement  of  the  facts  which  have  been 
delivered  to  faith.  This  being  the  object  in  view, 
determines  the  cast  of  his  language.  It  is  the  manner 
of  being,  the  manner  of  living,  the  manner  of  acting 
characteristic  of  Christ  at  successive  stages,  which  is 
to  occupy  our  minds.  Hence  the  Apostle's  thought 
expresses  itself  in  phrases  such  as  ^^ form  of  God," 
^^ form  of  a  servant,"  and  the  like.  We  are  to  see  one 
way  of  existing  succeeding  another  in  the  history  of 
Christ. 

First,  our  Lord  is  recognised  as  already  existing 
before  the  beginning  of  His  earthly  history;  and  in  that 
existence  He  contemplates  and  orders  what  His  course 
shall  be.  This  is  plain  ;  for  in  the  seventh  verse  He 
is  spoken  of  as  emptying  Himself,  and  thus  assuming 
the  likeness  of  men.  For  the  Apostle,  then,  it  was  a 
fixed  thing  that  He  who  was  born  in  Nazareth  pre- 
existed in  a  more  glorious  nature,  and  took  ours  by  a 
notable  condescension.  This  pre-existence  of  Christ  is 
the  first  thing  to  consider  when  we  would  make  clear 
to  ourselves  how  Christ,  being  true  man,  differs  from 

8 


114  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


other  men.  In  this  point  Paul  and  John  and  the 
writer  to  the  Hebrews  unite  their  testimony  in  the 
most  express  and  emphatic  way  ;  as  we  hear  our  Lord 
Himself  also  saying,  "  Before  Abraham  was,  I  am," 
and  speaking  of  the  glory  which  He  had  before  the 
world  was.  But  what  manner  of  existence  this  was  is 
also  set  forth.  He  "  existed  in  the  form  of  God."  The 
same  word  "  form  "  recurs  presently  in  the  expression 
*'  the  form  of  a  servant."  It  is  distinguished  from  the 
words  '*  likeness,"  "  fashion,"  which  are  expressed  by 
other  Greek  terms. 

Frequently  we    use    this  word    ^'  form "    in    a    way 
which    contrasts  it  with   the  true    being,  or  makes  it 
denote   the    outward  as    opposed  to  the  inward.     But 
according  to  the  usage  which  prevailed  among  thinking 
men   when  the  Apostle  wrote,  the  expression   should 
not  be  understood    to    point   to    anything    superficial, 
accidental,  superimposed.     No  doubt  it  is  an  expression 
which  describes  the  Being  by  adverting  to  the  attributes 
which,  as  it  were,  He  wore,  or  was  clothed  with.     But 
the  word  carries  us  especially  to  those  attributes  of  the 
thing  described  which  are  characteristic  ;  by  which  it 
is  permanently  distinguished  to  the  eye  or  to  the  mind  ; 
which  denote  its  true  nature  because  they  rise  out  of 
that  nature  ;    the  attributes  which,  to  our  minds,  ex- 
press the  essence.     So  here.     He  existed,  how  ?     In 
the  possession  and  use  of  all  that  pertains  to  the  Divine 
nature.      His  manner  of  existence  was,  what?     The 
Divine  manner  of  existence.     The  characters  through 


ii.  5-".]  THE  MIND   OF  CHRIST.  115 


which  Divine  existence  is  revealed  were  His.  He  sub- 
sisted in  the  form  of  God.  This  was  the  manner  of  it, 
the  glorious  "  form  "  which  ought  to  fix  and  hold  our 
minds. 

If  any  one  should  suggest  that,  according  to  this 
text,  the  pre-existent  Christ  might  be  only  a  creature, 
though  having  the  Divine  attributes  and  the  Divine 
mode  of  life,  he  would  introduce  a  mass  of  contradictions 
most  gratuitously.  The  Apostle's  thought  is  simply 
this  :  For  Christ  the  mode  of  existence  is  first  of  all 
Divine ;  then,  by-and-by,  a  new  form  rises  into  view. 
Our  Lord's  existence  did  not  begin  (according  to  the 
New  Testament  writers)  when  He  was  born,  when  He 
was  found  in  fashion  as  a  man,  sojourning  with  us. 
He  came  to  this  world  from  some  previous  state.  One 
asks  from  what  state  ?  Before  He  took  the  form  of 
man,  in  what  form  of  existence  was  He  found  ?  The 
Apostle  answers.  In  the  form  of  God. 

To  Him,  therefore,  with  and  in  the  Father,  we  have 
learned  to  ascribe  all  wisdom  and  power,  all  glory  and 
blessedness,  all  holiness  and  all  majesty.  Specially, 
through  Him  the  worlds  were  made,  and  in  Him  they 
consist.  The  fulness,  the  sufficiency,  the  essential 
strength  of  Godhead  w^ere  His.  The  exercise  and 
manifestation  of  all  these  was  His  form  of  being.  One 
might  expect,  then,  tliat  in  any  process  of  self-mani- 
festation to  created  beings  in  which  it  might  please 
Him  to  go  forth,  the  expression  of  His  supremacy  and 
transcendence  should  be  written  on  the  face  of  it. 


ii6  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

The  next  thought  is  expressed  in  the  received  trans- 
lation by  the  words  '*  thought  it  no  robbery  to  be  equal 
with  God."  So  truly  and  properly  Divine  was  He  that 
equality  with  God  could  not  appear  to  Him  or  be 
reckoned  by  Him  as  anything  else  than  His  own.  He 
counted  such  equality  no  robbery,  arrogance,  or  wrong. 
To  claim  it,  and  all  that  corresponds  to  it,  could  not 
appear  to  Him  something  assumed  without  right,  but 
rather  something  assumed  with  the  best  right.  So 
taken,  these  words  would  complete  the  Apostle's  view 
of  the  original  Divine  pre-eminence  of  the  Son  of  God. 
They  would  express,  so  to  say,  the  equit}^  of  the  situa- 
tion, from  which  all  that  follows  should  be  estimated. 
Had  it  pleased  the  Son  of  God  to  express  only,  and  to 
impress  on  all  minds  only  His  equality  with  God,  this 
could  not  have  seemed  to  Him  encroachment  or  wrong. 

I  think  a  good  deal  can  be  said  for  this.  But  the 
sense  which,  on  the  whole,  is  now  approved  by  commen- 
tators is  that  indicated  by  the  Revised  Version.  This 
takes  the  clause  not  as  still  dwelling  on  the  primeval 
glory  of  the  Son  of  God,  and  what  was  implied  in  it, 
but  rather  as  beginning  to  indicate  how  a  new  situation 
arose,  pointing  out  the  dispositions  out  of  which  the 
Incarnation  came.  *'  He  counted  it  not  a  prize  to  be  on 
an  equality  with  God."  To  hold  by  this  was  not  the 
great  object  with  Him.  In  any  steps  He  might  take, 
in  any  forthgoings  He  might  enter  on,  the  Son  of  God 
might  have  aimed  at  maintaining  and  disclosing  equality 
with  God.     That  alternative  was  open.     But  this  is  not 


ii.  S-ii.]  THE  MIND  OF  CHRIST.  117 

what  we  see :  no  holding  by  that,  no  solicitude  about  that 
appears.  His  procedure,  His  actings  reveal  nothing  of 
this  kind.  What  we  see  filling  His  heart  and  fixing 
His  regard,  is  not  what  might  be  due  to  Himself  or 
assumed  fitly  by  Himself,  but  what  might  bring  deliver- 
ance and  blessedness  to  us.* 

On  the  contrary,  **  He  emptied  Himself,  taking  the 
form  of  a  servant,  being  made  in  the  likeness  of  men." 
In  the  Incarnation  our  Lord  assumed  the  "  form  "  of  a 
servant,  or  slave  :  for  in  the  room  of  the  authority  of 
the  Creator,  now  appears  the  subjection  of  the  creature. 
He  who  gave  form  to  all  things,  and  Himself  set  the 
type  of  what  was  highest  and  best  in  the  universe, 
transcending  meanwhile  all  created  excellence  in  His 
uncreated  glory,  now  is  seen  conforming  Himself  to  the 
type  or  model  or  likeness  of  one  of  His  creatures,  of 
man.  He  comes  into  human  existence  as  men  do,  and 
He  continues  in  it  as  men  do.  Yet  it  is  not  said  that 
He  is  now  merely  a  man,  or  has  become  nothing  but 
a  man  ;  He  is  in  the  hkeness  of  men  and  is  found  in 
fashion  as  a  man. 

In  taking  this   great    step    the    Apostle    says    "  He 


*  Various  shades  ol"  meaning  have  been  proposed.  Meyer,  whose 
opinion  has  weight,  virtually  interprets  in  this  way :  He  did  not 
reckon  equality  with  God  (which  was  His)  to  imply  or  to  be  fitly 
exercised  in  acquisition,  or  in  accumulation  of  benefit  to  Himself  :  and 
Hofmann,  after  supporting  another  view,  appears  (in  his  Hist.  Schrift. 
N.  T.}  to  agree  with  this.  To  be  equal  to  God,  and  to  put  forth  power 
for  His  own  enrichment,  were  for  the  Son  very  different  things.  The 
one  He  possessed  :  the  other  He  renounced. 


Ii8  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

emptied  Himself."  The  emptying  is  perhaps  designedly 
opposed  to  the  thought  of  accumulation  or  self-enrich- 
ment conveyed  in  the  phrase  "  He  counted  it  not  a 
prize."  However  this  may  be,  the  phrase  is  in  itself 
a  remarkable  expression. 

It  seems  most  certain,  on  the  one  hand,  that  this 
cannot  import  that  He  who  was  with  God  and  was  God 
could  renounce  His  own  essential  nature  and  cease  to 
be  Divine.  The  assertion  of  a  contradiction  like  this 
involves  the  mind  in  mere  darkness.  The  notion  is 
excluded  by  other  scriptures  ;  for  He  who  came  on  earth 
among  us  is  Immanuel,  God  with  us  :  and  it  is  not 
required  by  the  passage  before  us ;  for  the  "  emptying  " 
can  at  most  apply  to  the  "  form  "  of  God — the  exercise 
and  enjoyment  of  Divine  attributes  such  as  adequately 
express  the  Divine  nature ;  and  it  may,  perhaps,  not 
extend  its  sense  even  so  far ;  for  the  writer  significantly 
abstains  from  carrying  his  thought  further  than  the  bare 
word  "  He  emptied  Himself." 

On  the  other  hand,  we  are  to  beware  of  weakening 
unduly  this  great  testimony.  Certainly  it  fixes  our 
thoughts  on  this,  at  least,  that  our  Lord,  by  becoming 
man,  had  for  His,  truly /or  His^  the  experience  of  human 
limitation,  human  weakness  and  impoverishment,  human 
dependence,  human  subjection,  singularly  contrasting 
with  the  glory  and  plenitude  of  the  form  of  God.  This 
became  His.  It  was  so  emphatically  real,  it  became  at 
the  Incarnation  so  emphatically  the  form  of  existence 
on  which   He  entered,   that  it  is  the  thing  eminently 


ii.  5-11-J  THE  MIND   OF  CHRIST.  119 

to  be  regarded,  reverently  to  be  dwelt  upon.  This 
emptiness,  instead  of  that  fulness,  is  to  draw  and  fix 
our  regard.  Instead  of  the  form  of  God,  there  rises 
before  us  this  true  human  history,  this  lowly  manhood 
—and  it  took  place  by  His  emptying  Himself. 

Various  persons  and  schools  have  thought  it  right  to 
go  further.  The  word  here  used  has  appeared  to  them 
to  suggest  that  if  the  Son  of  God  did  not  renounce  His 
Godhead,  yet  the  Divine  nature  in  Him  must  have 
bereaved  itself  of  the  Divine  attributes,  or  withheld 
itself  from  the  use  and  exercise  of  them ;  so  that  the 
all-fulness  no  longer  was  at  His  disposal.  In  this  line 
they  have  gone  on  to  describe  or  assign  the  mode  of 
self-emptying  which  the  Incarnation  should  imply. 

It  does  not  appear  to  me  that  one  can  lay  down 
positions  as  to  the  internal  privations  of  One  whose 
nature  is  owned  to  be  essentially  Divine,  without  falling 
into  confusion  and  darkening  counsel.  But  perhaps  we 
may  do  well  to  cherish  the  impression  that  this  self- 
emptying  on  the  part  of  the  eternal  Son  of  God,  for  our 
salvation,  involves  realities  which  we  cannot  conceive 
or  put  in  any  words.  There  was  more  in  this  empty- 
ing of  Himself  than  we  can  think  or  say. 

He  emptied  Himself  when  He  became  man.  Here 
we  have  the  eminent  example  of  a  Divine  mystery, 
which,  being  revealed,  remains  a  mystery  never  to  be 
adequately  explained,  and  which  yet  proves  full  of 
meaning  and  full  of  power.  The  Word  was  made  flesh. 
He  through  whom  all  worlds  took  being,  was  seen  in 


120  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHtLIPPIANS. 

Judaea  in  the  lowliness  of  that  practical  historical  man- 
hood. We  never  can  explain  this.  But  if  we  beheve 
it  all  things  become  new  for  us  :  the  meaning  it  proves 
to  have  for  human  history  is  inexhaustible. 

He  emptied  Himself,  "  taking  the  form  of  a  servant," 
or  bondslave.  For  the  creature  is  in  absolute  sub- 
jection ahke  to  God's  authority  and  to  His  providence  ; 
and  so  Christ  came  to  be.  He  entered  on  a  discipline 
of  subjection  and  obedience.  In  particular  He  was 
made  after  the  Hkeness  of  men.  He  was  born  as  other 
children  are  ;  He  grew  as  other  children  grow ;  body 
and  mind  took  shape  for  Him  under  human  conditions. 

And  so  He  was  "  found  in  fashion  as  a  man."  Could 
words  express  more  strongly  how  wonderful  it  is  in  the 
Apostle's  eyes  that  He  should  so  be  found  ?  He  lived 
His  life  and  made  His  mark  in  the  world  in  human 
fashion — His  form.  His  mien,  His  speech,  His  acts, 
His  way  of  life  declared  Him  man.  But  being  so,  He 
humbled  Himself  to  a  strange  and  great  obedience. 
Subjection,  and  in  that  subjection  obedience,  is  the  part 
of  every  creature.  But  the  obedience  which  Christ 
was  called  to  learn  was  special.  A  heavy  task  was 
laid  upon  Him.  He  was  made  under  the  law;  and 
bearing  the  burden  of  human  sin,  He  wrought  redemp- 
tion. In  doing  so  many  great  interests  fell  to  Him  to 
be  cared  for ;  and  this  was  done  by  Him,  not  in  the 
manner  of  Godhead  which  speaks  and  it  is  done,  but 
with  the  pains  and  labour  of  a  faithful  servant.  *'  I 
have  a  commandment,"  He  said,  as  He  faced  the  Jews, 


ii.  5-11]  THE  MIND   OF  CHRIST.  121 


who  would  have    had   His  Messianic    work   otherwise 
ordered  (John  xii.  49). 

This  experience  deepened  into  the  final  experience  of 
the  cross.  Death  is  the  signature  of  failure  and  dis- 
grace. Even  with  sinless  creatures  it  seems  so.  Their 
beauty  and  their  use  are  past ;  their  worth  is  measured 
and  exhausted  ;  they  die.  More  emphatically  in  a  nature 
like  ours,  which  aims  at  fellowship  wuth  God  and 
inmiortahty,  death  is  significant  this  way,  and  bears  the 
character  of  doom.  So  we  are  taught  to  think  that 
death  entered  by  sin.  But  the  violent  and  cruel  death 
of  crucifixion,  inflicted  for  the  worst  crimes,  is  most 
significant  this  way.  What  it  comprehended  for  our 
Lord  we  cannot  measure.  We  know  that  He  looked 
forward  to  it  with  the  most  solemn  expectation;  and 
when  it  came  the  experience  was  overwhelming.  Yes, 
He  submitted  to  the  doom  and  blight  of  death,  in  which 
death  He  made  atonement  and  finished  transgression. 
The  Incarnation  was  the  way  in  which  our  Lord  bound 
Himself  to  our  woful  fortunes,  and  carried  to  us  the 
benefits  with  which  He  would  enrich  us  ;  and  His 
death  was  for  our  sins,  endured  that  we  might  live.  But 
the  Apostle  does  not  here  dwell  on  the  reasons  why 
Christ's  obedience  must  take  this  road.  It  is  enough 
that  for  reasons  concerning  our  welfare,  and  the  worthy 
achievement  of  the  Father's  Divine  purposes,  Christ 
bowed  Himself  to  so  great  lowliness.  A  dark  and  sad 
death — a  true  obedience  unto  death — became  the  portion 
of  the  Son  of  God.     "  I  am  the  Living  One,  and  I  was 


122  THE  EPISTLE    TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

dead."    So  complete  was  the  self-emptying,  the  humilia- 
tion, the  obedience. 

"  Therefore  God  also  hath  highly  exalted  Him,  and 
given  Him  the  Name  that  is  above  every  name."  For 
still  we  must  think  of  Him  as  One  that  has  come  down 
into  the  region  of  the  creatures,  the  region  in  which  we 
are  distinguished  by  names,  and  are  capable  of  higher 
and  lower  in  endless  degrees.  God,  dealing  with  Him 
so  situated,  acts  in  a  manner  rightly  corresponding  to 
this  great  self-dedication,  so  as  to  utter  God's  mind 
upon  it.  He  has  set  Him  on  high,  and  given  Him  the 
Name  that  is  above  every  name  ;  so  that  Divine  honour 
shall  be  rendered  to  Him  by  all  creation,  and  knees 
bowed  in  worship  to  Him  everywhere,  and  all  shall 
own  Him  Lord — that  is,  partaker  of  Divine  Sovereignty. 
All  this  is  ''  to  the  glory  of  the  Father,"  seeing  that  in 
all  this  the  worthiness  and  beauty  of  God's  being 
and  ways  come  to  light  with  a  splendour  heretofore 
unexampled. 

So  then,  we  may  say,  perhaps,  that  as  in  the  humilia- 
tion He  who  is  God  experienced  what  it  is  to  be  man, 
now  in  the  exaltation  He  who  is  man  experiences  what 
it  is  to  be  God. 

But  the  point  to  dwell  on  chiefly  is  this  consideration 
— What  is  it  that  attracts  so  specially  the  Father's 
approbation  ?  What  does  so  is  Christ's  great  act  of 
self-forgetting  love.  That  satisfies  and  rests  the  Divine 
mind.  Doubtless  the  Son's  pure  and  perfect  character, 
and  the  perfection  of  His  whole  service,  were  on  all 


ii.  5-1  I.J  THE  MIND   OF  CHRIST.  123 

accounts  approved  ;  but  specially  the  miiid  of  Christ 
revealed  in  I  lis  self-forgetting  devotion.  Therefore  God 
has  highly  exalted  Him. 

For,  in  the  first  place,  Christ  in  this  work  of  His  is 
Himself  the  revelation  of  the  Father.  All  along  the 
Father's  heart  is  seen  disclosed.  It  was  in  fellowship 
with  the  Father,  always  delighting  in  Him,  that  the 
history  was  entered  on  ;  in  harmony  with  Him  it  was 
accomplished.  Throughout  we  have  before  us  not  only 
the  mind  of  the  Son,  but  the  mind  of  the  Father  that 
sent  Him. 

And  then,  in  the  next  place,  as  the  Son,  sent  forth 
into  the  world,  and  become  one  of  us,  and  subject  to 
vicissitude,  accomplishes  His  course,  it  is  fitting  for  the 
Father  to  watch,  to  approve,  and  to  crown  the  service ; 
and  He  who  has  so  given  Himself  for  God  and  man 
must  take  the  place  due  to  such  a  "  mind  "  and  to  such 
an  obedience. 

Let  us  observe  it  then :  what  was  in  God's  eye  and 
ought  to  be  in  ours,  is  not  only  the  dignity  of  the  per- 
son, the  greatness  of  the  condescension,  the  perfection 
of  obedience  and  patience  of  endurance,  but,  in  the 
heart  of  all  these,  the  iuind  of  Christ.  That  was  the 
inspiration  of  the  whole  marvellous  history,  vivifying  it 
throughout.  Christ,  indeed,  was  not  One  who  could  so 
care  for  us,  as  to  fail  in  His  regard  to  any  interest  of 
His  Father's  name  or  kingdom  ;  nor  could  He  take  any 
course  really  unseemly,  because  unworthy  of  Himself. 
But  carrying  with  Him  all  that  is  due  to  His  Father, 


124  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

and  all  that  befits  His  Father's  Child  and  Servant,  the 
wonderful  thing  is  how  His  heart  yearns  over  men, 
how  His  course  shapes  itself  to  the  necessities  of  our 
case,  how  all  that  concerns  Himself  disappears  as  He 
looks  on  the  fallen  race.  A  worthy  deliverance  for 
them,  consecrating  them  to  God  in  the  blessedness  of 
life  eternal — this  is  in  His  eye,  to  be  reached  by  Him 
through  all  kinds  of  lowliness,  obedience,  and  suffering. 
On  this  His  heart  was  set ;  this  gave  meaning  and 
character  to  every  step  of  His  history.  This  was  the 
mind  of  the  good  Shepherd  that  laid  down  His  life  for 
the  sheep.  And  this  is  what  completes  and  consecrates 
all  the  service,  and  receives  the  Father's  triumphant 
approbation.  This  is  the  Lamb  of  God.  There  never 
was  a  Lamb  like  this. 

How  all  this  was  and  is  in  the  Eternal  Son  in  His 
Divine  nature  we  cannot  suitably  conceive.  In  some 
most  sublime  and  perfect  manner  we  own  it  to  be  there. 
But  we  can  think  of  it  and  speak  of  it  as  the  ''  mind  of 
Christ "  :  as  it  came  to  light  in  the  Man  of  Bethlehem, 
who,  amid  all  the  possibilities  of  the  Incarnation,  is 
seen  setting  His  face  so  steadily  one  way,  whose  life  is 
all  of  one  piece,  and  to  whom  we  ascribe  grace.  ^'  Ye 
know  the  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ."  Therefore 
God  has  highly  exalted  Him,  and  given  Him  the  Name 
that  is  above  every  name.  This  is  the  right  way.  This 
is  the  right  life. 

Are  we  followers  of  Christ  ?  Are  we  in  touch  with 
His  grace  ?     Do  we  yield   ourselves  to  His  will  and 


ii.  S-ii.]  THE  MIND   OF  CHRIST.  125 


way  ?  Do  we  renounce  the  melancholy  obstructiveness 
which  sets  us  at  odds  with  Christ  ?  Do  we  count  it 
our  wisdom  now  to  come  into  His  school  ?  Then,  let 
this  mind  be  in  you  which  was  also  in  Christ  Jesus, 
this  lowly,  loving  mind.  Let  it.  Look  not  every  man 
on  his  own  things,  but  every  man  also  on  the  things  of 
others.  Do  nothing  through  strife  or  vainglory.  In 
lowliness  of  mind  let  each  esteem  the  other  better  than 
himself.  Let  all  bitterness,  and  wrath,  and  anger,  and 
envy,  and  evil  speaking,  be  put  away  from  you,  with  all 
malice :  and  be  ye  kind  one  to  another,  tenderhearted, 
forgiving  one  another,  even  as  God  for  Christ's  sake 
hath  forgiven  you.  If  there  is  any  comfort  in  Christ,  if 
any  consolation  of  love,  if  any  fellowship  of  the  Spirit, 
if  any  tender  mercies  and  compassions,  let  this  be  so. 
Let  this  mind  be  in  you ;  and  find  ways  of  showing  it. 
But,  indeed,  if  it  be;  in  you  it  will  find  ways  to  show 
itself. 

The  Church  of  Christ  has  not  been  without  likeness 
to  its  Lord,  and  service  to  its  Lord :  yet  it  has  come 
far  short  in  showing  to  the  world  the  mind  of  Christ. 
We  often  "show  the  Lord's  death."  But  in  His  death 
were  the  mighty  life  and  the  conclusive  triumph  of 
Christ's  love.  Let  the  life  also  of  Christ  Jesus  be 
manifest  in  our  mortal  body. 

We  see  here  what  the  vision  of  Christ  was  which 
opened  itself  to  Paul, — which,  glowing  in  his  heart, 
sent  him  through  the  world,  seeking  the  profit  of  many, 
that  they  might  be  saved.     This  was  in  his  mind,  the 


126  THE   EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHIUPPIANS. 


wonderful  condescension  and  devotion  of  the  Son  of 
God.      "  It  pleased   God   to   reveal   His   Son    in   me." 
"  God,  who  commanded  the  light  to  shine  out  of  dark- 
ness, hath  shined  in  our  hearts,  to  give  the  light  of  the 
knowledge  of  the  glory  of  God  in  the  face  of   Christ 
Jesus."     "  Ye  know  the  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
how  that  though  He  was  rich  yet  for  our  sakes  He  be- 
came poor,  that  we  through  His  poverty  might  be  made 
rich."    "  He  loved  me  and  gave  Himself  for  me."     And 
in  various  forms  and  degrees  the  manifestation  of  this 
same  grace  has  astonished,  and  conquered,  and  inspired 
all  those  who  have  greatly  served  Christ  in  the  Church 
in  seeking  to  do  good  to  men.    Let  us  not  separate  our- 
selves from   this   fellowship  of  Christ ;   let  us  not  be 
secluded   from  this   mind  of  Christ.     As  we  come  to 
Him  with  our  sorrows,  and  sins,   and  wants,  let   us 
drink  into  His  mind.     Let  us  sit  at  His  feet  and  learn 
of  Him. 

A  line  of  contemplation,  hard  to  follow  yet  inspiring, 
opens  up  in  considering  the  Incarnation  of  our  Lord  as 
permanent.  No  day  is  coming  in  which  that  shall  have 
to  be  looked  upon  as  gone  away  into  the  past.  This  is 
suggestive  as  to  the  tie  between  Creator  and  creature, 
as  to  the  bridge  between  Infinite  and  finite,  to  be  ever- 
more found  in  Him.  But  it  may  suffice  here  to  have 
indicated  the  topic. 

It  is  more  to  the  point,  in  connection  with  this 
passage,  to  call  attention  to  a  lesson  for  the  present 


ii.  5-II.]  THE   MIND   OF  CHRIST.  127 

day.     Of  late  great  emphasis  has  been  laid  by  earnest 
thinkers  upon   the   reality  of  Christ's    human    nature. 
Anxiety  has  been  felt  to  do  full  right  to  that  humanity 
which  the  Gospels  set  before  us  so  vividly.     This  has 
been  in  many  ways  a  happy  service  to  the  Church.     In 
the  hands  of  divines  the  humanity  of  Christ  has  some- 
times seemed  to  become  shadowy  and  unreal,  through 
the  stress  laid  on  His  proper  Godhead  ;  and  now  men 
have  become  anxious  to  possess  their  souls  with  the 
human  side  of  things,  even  perhaps  at  the  cost  of  leaving 
the  Divine  side  untouched.     The  recoil  has  carried  men 
quite  naturally  into  a  kind  of  humanitarianism,  some- 
times   deliberate,    sometimes    unconscious.      Christ    is 
thought  of  as  the  ideal  Man,  who,  just  because  He  is  the 
ideal  Man,  is  morally  indistinguishable  from  God,  and 
is  in  the  closest  fellowship  with  God.     Yet  He  grows  on 
the  soil  of  human  nature.  He  is  fundamentally  and  only 
human.    And  this,  it  is  implied,  is  enough :  it  covers  all 
we  want.    But  we  see  this  was  not  Paul's  way  of  thinking. 
The  real  humanity  was  necessary  for  him,  because  he 
desiderated  a  real  incarnation.     But  the  true  original 
Divine  nature  was  also  necessary.     For  so  he  discerned 
the  love — the  grace,  and  the  gift  by  grace ;  so  he  felt 
that  the  Eternal  God  had  bowed  down  to  bless  him  in 
and  by  His  Son.     It  makes  a  great  difference  to  religion 
when  men  are  persuaded  to  forego  this  faith. 


WORKING  AND  SHINING. 


129 


"  So  then,  my  beloved,  even  as  ye  have  always  obeyed,  not  as  in  my 
presence  only,  but  now  much  more  in  my  absence,  work  out  your  own 
salvation  with  fear  and  trembling;  for  it  is  God  which  worketh  in 
you  both  to  will  and  to  work,  for  His  good  pleasure.  Do  all  things 
without  murmurings  and  disputings ;  that  ye  may  be  blameless  and 
harmless,  children  of  God  without  blemish  in  the  midst  of  a  crooked 
and  perverse  generation,  among  whom  ye  are  seen  as  Hghts  in  the 
world,  holding  forth  the  word  of  life ;  that  I  may  have  whereof  to 
glory  in  the  day  of  Christ,  that  I  did  not  run  in  vain  neither  labour 
in  vain.  Yea,  and  if  I  am  offered  upon  the  sacrifice  and  service  of 
your  faith,  I  joy,  and  rdfjoice  with  you  all :  and  in  the  same  manner 
do  ye  also  joy,  and  rejoice  with  me." — Phil.  ii.  12-18  (R.V.). 


130 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

WORKING  AND  SHINING. 

AFTER  his  great  appeal  to  the  mind  ot  Christ,  the 
Apostle  can  pursue  his  practical  object ;  and  he 
can  do  so  with  a  certain  tranquillity,  confident  that  the 
forces  he  has  just  set  in  motion  will  not  fail  to  do  their 
work.  But  yet  that  same  appeal  itself  has  tended 
to  broaden  and  deepen  the  conception  of  what  should 
be  aimed  at.  He  had  deprecated  the  arrogant  and 
the  selfish  mind,  as  these  are  opposed  to  lovingkind- 
ness  and  regard  for  others.  But  now,  in  presence  of 
the  great  vision  of  the  Incarnation  and  obedience  of 
Christ,  the  deeper  note  of  lowliness  must  be  struck  in 
fit  accord  with  that  of  love ;  not  only  lowliness  in  the 
way  of  doing  ready  honour  to  others,  but  deep  and 
adoring  lowhness  towards  God,  such  as  is  due  both 
from  creatures  and  from  sinners.  For  if  Christ's  love 
fulfilled  itself  in  such  a  perfect  humihty,  how  deeply 
does  it  become  us  to  bear  towards  God  in  Christ  a 
mind  of  penitence  and  gratitude,  of  loving  awe  and 
wonder,  such  as  shall  at  the  same  time  for  ever  exclude 

from  our  bearing  towards  others  both  pride  and  self- 

131 


132  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHIUPPIANS. 

seeking.  In  this  way  the  one  practical  object  suggested 
by  the  circumstances  at  PhiKppi — namely,  loving  unity 
— now  allies  itself  naturally  with  ideas  of  complete  and 
harmonious  Christian  life  ;  and  various  views  of  that  life 
begin  to  open.  But  each  aspect  of  it  still  proves  to  be 
connected  with  the  gracious  and  gentle  mind  of  Christ, 
in  the  lowly  form  of  that  mind  which  is  appropriate  for 
a  sinner  who  is  also  a  believer. 

So  then  they  are  to  apply  themselves  to  the  ''  calling 
wherewith  they  are  called,"  in  a  spirit  of  "fear  and 
trembling."  The  phrase  is  a  common  one  with  the 
Apostle  (i  Cor.  ii.  3;  2  Cor.  vii.  15;  Eph.  v.  6).  He 
uses  it  where  he  would  express  a  state  of  mind  in 
which  willing  reverence  is  joined  with  a  certain  sensi- 
tive anxiety  to  escape  dangerous  mistakes  and  to  per- 
form duty  well.     And  it  is  fitly  called  for  here,  for 

1.  If  lowliness  so  became  the  Divine  Saviour,  who 
was  full  of  grace,  wisdom,  and  power,  then  what  shall 
be  the  mind  of  those  who  in  great  guilt  and  need  have 
found  part  in  the  salvation,  and  who  are  going  forward 
to  its  fulness  ?  What  shall  be  the  mind  of  those  who, 
in  this  experience,  are  looking  up  to  Christ — looking  up 
to  lowliness  ?  Surely  not  the  spirit  of  strife  and  vain- 
glory (ver.  3),  but  of  fear  and  trembling — the  mind 
that  dreads  to  be  presumptuous  and  arrogant,  because 
it  finds  the  danger  to  be  still  near. 

2.  The  salvation  has  to  be  wrought  out.  It  must 
come  to  pass  in  your  case  in  the  line  of  your  own  en- 
deavour,    Having  its  power  and  fulness  in  Christ,  and 


ii.  12-18.]  WORKING  AND  SfllNlNG.  133 


bestowed  by  Him  on  you,  yet  this  deliverance  from 
distance,  estrangement,  darkness,  unholiness,  is  given  to 
believers  to  be  wrought  out :  it  comes  as  a  right  to  be 
realised,  and  as  a  power  to  be  exercised,  and  as  a  goal 
to  be  attained.  Think  of  this, — you  have  in  hand  your 
own  salvation — great.  Divine,  and  wonderful — to  be 
wrought  out.  Can  you  go  about  it  without  fear  and 
trembling  ?  Consider  what  you  are — consider  what 
you  believe — consider  what  you  seek — and  what  a 
spirit  of  lowly  and  contrite  eagerness  will  pervade  your 
life !  This  holds  so  much  the  more,  because  the 
salvation  itself  stands  so  much  in  likeness  to  Christ — 
that  is  to  say,  in  a  loving  lowliness.  Let  a  man  think 
how  much  is  in  him  that  tends,  contrariwise,  to  self- 
assertion  and  self-seeking,  and  he  will  have  reason 
enough  to  fear  and  tremble  as  he  lays  fresh  hold  on 
the  promises,  and  sets  his  face  to  the  working  out  of 
this  his  own  salvation. 

3.  This  very  working  out,  from  whom  does  it  come  ? 
Are  you  the  explanation  and  last  source  of  it  ?  What 
does  it  mean  ?  Wherever  it  takes  place,  it  means  that, 
in  a  very  special  sense,  God's  mighty  presence  and 
power  is  put  forth  in  us  to  will  and  to  do.  Shall  not 
this  thought  quell  our  petulance  ?  Where  is  room  now 
for  anything  but  fear  and  trembling — a  deep  anxiety  to 
be  lowly,  obedient,  compliant  ? 

Whether,  therefore,  we  look  to  the  history  of  the 
Saviour,  or  to  the  work  to  which  our  own  Hfe  is 
devoted,  or  to  the  power  that  animates  that  work  and 


134  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


on  which  it  depends — in  all  alike  we  find  ourselves 
committed  to  the  lowly  mind  ;  and  in  all  alike  we  find 
ourselves  beset  with  a  wealth  of  free  beneficence,  which 
lays  obligation  on  us  to  be  self-forgetting  and  loving. 
We  are  come  into  a  wonderful  world  of  compassionate 
love.  That  is  the  platform  on  which  we  stand — the 
light  we  see  by — the  music  that  fills  our  ears — the 
fragrance  that  rises  on  every  side.  If  we  are  to  live 
here,  there  is  only  one  way  for  it — there  is  only  one 
kind  of  life  that  can  live  in  this  region.  And,  being, 
as  we  are,  alas,  so  strangely  coarse  and  hard — even 
if  this  gospel  gladdens  us,  there  may  well  thrill  through 
our  gladness  a  very  honest  and  a  very  contrite  ''  fear 
and  trembling." 

Now  all  this  is  by  the  Apostle  persuasively  urged  upon 
his  Philippian  children  (ver.  12)  :  "As  ye  have  always 
obeyed,  not  as  in  my  presence  only,  but  now  much 
more  in  my  absence."  For,  indeed,  it  proves  easy 
comparatively  for  our  human  indolence  to  yield  to  the 
spell  of  some  great  and  forcible  personality  when  he 
s  present.  It  is  even  pleasant  to  allow  ourselves  to 
be  borne  on  by  the  tide  of  his  enthusiastic  goodness. 
And  when  the  Apostle  was  at  Philippi,  it  might  come 
easier  to  many  of  them  to  teel  the  force  and  scope  of 
their  calling  in  Christ.  And  yet  now  that  he  was  gone, 
now  was  the  time  for  them  to  prove  for  themselves, 
and  evince  to  others,  the  durable  worth  of  the  great 
discovery  they  had  made,  and  the  thoroughness  of  the 
decision  which  had  transformed  their  lives.     Now,  also, 


li.  12-18.]  WORKING  AND  SHINING.  135 

was  the  time  to  show  Paul  himself,  that  their  "  obedi- 
ence "  was  of  the  deep  and  genuine  quality  which  alone 
could  give  content  to  him. 

Such  in  general  seems  to  be  the  scope  of  these  two 
verses.  But  one  or  two  of  the  points  deserve  to  be 
considered  a  little  before  we  go  on. 

Mark  how  emphatically  the  Apostle  affirms  the  great 
truth,  that  every  good  thing  accompanying  salvation 
which  comes  to  pass  in  Christians  is  of  the  mighty 
power  and  grace  of  God.  Therefore  Christianity  must 
stand  so  much  in  asking  and  in  thanking.  It  is  God 
that  worketh  in  you.  He  does  it,  and  no  other  than  He  ; 
it  is  His  prerogative.  He  worketh  to  will  and  to  do. 
The  inclination  of  the  heart  and  the  purpose  of  the 
will  are  of  Him  ;  and  the  striving  to  bring  forth  into 
act  and  deed  what  has  been  so  conceived — that  also  is 
of  Him.  He  quickens  those  who  were  dead  in  tres- 
passes and  sins ;  He  gives  the  renewing  of  the  Holy 
Ghost ;  He  makes  His  children  perfect,  working  in  them 
that  which  is  well  pleasing  in  His  sight  through  Jesus 
Christ.  All  this  He  does  in  the  exercise  of  His  proper 
power,  in  the  "  exceeding  greatness  of  His  power  to  us- 
ward  who  believe  " — "  according  to  the  working  of  His 
mighty  power,  which  wrought  in  Christ  when  He  was 
raised  from  the  dead."  Apparently  we  are  to  take  it 
that  in  the  children  of  God  there  is  the  new  heart,  or 
new  nature,  in  respect  of  which  they  are  new  creatures; 
and  also  the  indwelling  of  God  by  His  Spirit ;  and 
also  the  actual  working  of  the  same  Spirit  in  all  fruits 


i-,6  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


of  righteousness  which  they  bring  forth  to  the  glory 
and  praise  of  God.  And  these  three  are  so  connected, 
that  regard  should  be  had  to  all  of  them  when  we 
contemplate  each. 

He  worketh  to  will  and  to  do.  From  Him  all  godly 
desires  and  purposes  proceed — from  Him,  every  passage 
in  our  lives  in  which  the  ''  salvation  that  is  in  Christ 
Jesus  "  is  by  us  received,  put  to  proof,  wrought  out 
into  the  transactions  of  our  lives.  It  must  be  so,  if 
we  will  only  think  of  it.  For  this  "salvation"  in- 
volves an  actual,  and  in  principle  a  complete  agreement 
with  God,  affirmed  and  embodied  in  each  right  thought, 
and  word,  and  deed.  Whence  could  this  flow  but  from 
Himself? 

In  their  statements  and  explanations  about  this 
Christians  have  differed.  The  difference  has  been 
mainly  on  the  point,  how  to  make  it  clear  that  men 
are  not  dealt  with  as  inert  nor  as  irresponsible  ;  that 
they  must  not  hold  themselves  excused  from  working 
on  the  ground  that  God  works  all.  For  all  agree  that 
men  are  called  to  the  most  serious  earnestness  of 
purpose  and  the  most  alert  activity  of  action  ;  but  the 
theorising  of  this  activity  occasions  debate.  It  is 
from  the  motive  of  trying  to  make  more  room  for  these 
indispensable  elements  on  the  human  side,  that  modes 
of  statement  have  been  suggested  which  limit  or  explain 
away  the  Apostle's  statement  here.  The  motive  is  com- 
mendable, but  the  method  is  not  commonly  successful. 
All  efforts  to  divide  the  ground  between  God  and  man 


ii.  12-18.]  IVORKING  AND  SHINING.  137 


go  astray.  In  the  inward  process  of  salvation,  and 
especially  in  this  "  willing  and  doing,"  God  does  all, 
and  also  man  does  all.  But  God  takes  precedence. 
For  it  is  He  that  quickeneth  the  dead,  and  calleth 
things  that  are  not  as  though  they  were.  Here  we 
may  say,  as  the  Apostle  does  in  another  case,  "  This 
is  a  great  mystery."  Let  us  recognise  it  as  a  mystery 
bound  up  with  any  hope  we  ourselves  have  of  proving 
to  be  children  of  God.  And  under  the  sense  of  it, 
with  fear  and  trembling  let  us  work,  for  it  is  God  that 
worketh  in  us  to  will  and  to  do. 

He  worketh  in  us  to  will.  When  I  trace  back  any 
of  my  actions  to  the  fountain  where  it  takes  its  rise  as 
mine,  I  find  that  fountain  in  my  will.  The  materials 
which  I  take  up  into  my  act,  the  impressions  which 
gather  together  to  create  a  situation  for  me,  may  all 
have  their  separate  history  going  back  in  the  order  of 
cause  and  effect  to  the  beginning  of  the  world  ;  but 
that  which  makes  it  mine,  is  that  /  n't'//,  I  choose,  and 
thereupon  I  do  it.  Therefore  also  it  is  that  I  must 
answer  for  it,  because  it  is  mine.  I  willed  it,  and  in 
willing  it  I  created  something  which  pertains  to  me, 
and  to  no  other ;  something  began  which  is  mine,  and 
the  responsibility  for  it  cleaves  only  to  me.  But  in  the 
return  to  God  through  Christ,  and  in  the  working  out 
of  that  salvation,  there  are  acts  of  mine,  most  truly 
mine ;  and  yet  in  these  another  Will,  the  Will  of  Him 
who  saves,  is  most  intimately  concerned.  He  worketh 
in  us  to  will.     It  is  not  an  enslaving,  but  an  emancipat- 


138  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

ing  energy.  It  brings  about  free  action,  yet  such  as 
fulfils  a  most  gracious  Divine  purpose.  So  these 
^'willings"  embody  a  consent,  a  union  of  heart  and 
mind  and  will,  His  and  mine,  the  thought  of  which  is 
enough  to  bow  me  to  the  ground  with  "  fear  and 
trembling."  This  is  He  who  gathereth  the  dispersed 
of  Israel  into  one. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  salvation  is  to  be  wrought 
out  by  us.  To  have  faith  in  the  Son  of  God  in  exercise 
and  prevalence ;  to  have  heart  and  life  formed  to 
childlike  love  of  God,  and  to  the  fulfilment  of  His  will ; 
to  carry  this  out  against  the  flesh  and  the  world  and 
the  devil,^all  this  is  a  great  career  of  endeavour  and 
attainment.  It  is  much  to  make  the  discoveries  implied 
in  it :  finding  out  at  each  stage  the  meaning  of  it,  and 
how  it  should  take  shape.  It  is  much  to  have  the  heart 
brought  to  beat  true  to  it,  to  love  it,  consent  to  it,  be 
set  upon  it.  It  is  much  to  embody  it  in  faithful  and 
successful  practice  in  the  rough  school  of  life,  with  its 
actual  collision  and  conflict.  Now  the  nature  and 
working  of  God's  grace  at  each  stage  is  of  this  kind, 
that  it  operates  in  three  ways  at  least.  It  operates 
as  a  call,  an  effectual  call,  setting  a  man  on  to  arise 
and  go.  It  operates  also  in  a  way  of  instruction, 
setting  us  to  learn  lessons,  teaching  us  how  to  live, 
as  it  is  said  in  Titus  ii.  1 1,  12.  And  it  operates  as  a 
power,  as  help  in  time  of  need.  He  that  sits  still  at 
the  call — he  that  will  not  be  considerate  to  learn  the 
lesson — he  that  will  not  cast  himself  on  the  strength 


ii.  12-18.]  WORKING  AND  SHINING.  139 


perfected  in  weakness,  that  he  may  fulfil  and  do  the 
Father's  will — he  is  a  man  who  despises  and  denies 
the  grace  of  God. 

Now  what  has  been  said  of  the  believer's  relation 
to  the  saving  God,  prepares  the  way  for  referring  to 
his  office  towards  the  world.  Here  the  moral  and 
practical  theme  which  is  in  the  Apostle's  mind  all 
through  proves  again  to  be  in  place  :  the  lowly  and 
loving  mind  will  best  discharge  that  office  towards  the 
world,  which  the  arrogant  and  distempered  mind 
would  hinder.  "  Do  all  things  without  murmurings 
and  disputings,  that  ye  may  be  blameless  and 
harmless." 

A  murmuring  and  disputatious  temper — murmuring 
at  what  displeases  us,  and  multiplying  debate  about 
it — is  simply  one  form  of  the  spirit  which  Paul  depre- 
cates all  through  this  context.  It  is  the  sign  of  the 
disposition  to  value  unduly  one's  own  ease,  one's  own 
will,  one's  own  opinion,  one's  own  party,  and  to  lie 
at  the  catch  for  opportunities  to  bring  that  feeling  into 
evidence.  Now  observe  the  harm  which  the  Apostle 
anticipates.  It  is  your  office  to  serve  God  by  making 
a  right  impression  on  the  world.  How  shall  that  come 
to  pass  ?  Chiefly,  or  at  least  primarily,  the  A.postle 
seems  to  say,  by  the  absence  of  evil.  At  least,  that 
is  the  most  general  and  the  safest  notion  of  it,  with 
which  to  begin.  Some,  no  doubt,  make  impressions 
by   their  eloquence,  or  by   their  wisdom,   or   by  their 


140  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

enterprising  and  successful  benevolence — though  all 
these  have  dangers  and  drawbacks  attending  them,  in 
so  far  as  the  very  energy  of  action  provides  a  shelter 
for  unperceived  self-will.  Still,  let  them  have  their 
place  and  their  praise.  But  here  is  the  line  that  might 
suit  all.  A  man  whose  life  stands  clear  of  the  world's 
deformities,  under  the  influence  of  a  light  and  a  love 
from  which  the  world  is  estranged,  gradually  makes  an 
impression. 

Now  murmuring  and  disputing  are  precisely  adapted 
to  hinder  this  impression.  And  sometimes  they  hinder 
it  in  the  case  of  people  of  high  excellence — people  who 
have  much  sound  and  strong  principle,  who  have 
large  benevolence,  who  are  capable  of  making  remark- 
able sacrifices  to  duty  when  they  see  it.  Yet  this  vice, 
perhaps  a  surface  vice,  of  murmuring  and  disputing,  is 
so  suggestive  of  a  man's  self  being  uppermost,  it  so 
unpleasantly  forces  itself  in  as  the  interpretation  of 
the  man,  that  his  real  goodness  is  little  accounted  of. 
At  all  events,  the  peculiar  purity  of  the  Christian 
character — its  blamelessness  and  harmlessness,  its 
innocence — does  not  in  his  case  come  to  light.  People 
say  :  "  Ah,  he  is  one  of  the  mixed  ones,  like  ourselves. 
Christian  devoutness  suits  some  people :  they  are 
sincere  enough  in  it  very  likely ;  but  it  leaves  them, 
after  all,  pretty  much  as  it  found  them." 

I  say  no  more  about  murmuring  and  disputing  as 
these  reveal  themselves  in  our  relations  to  others.  But 
the  same  spirit,  and  attended  in  its  operations  with  the 


ii.  12-18.]  WORKING  AND  SHINING.  141 


same  evil  effects,  may  manifest  itself  in  other  ways 
besides  that  of  unkindness  to  men.  As  frequently, 
perhaps,  it  may  show  itself  in  our  behaviour  towards 
God  ;  and  in  that  case  it  interferes  at  least  as  seriously 
with  the  shining  of  our  light  in  the  world. 

Just  as  in  the  camp  of  Israel  of  old  on  many 
memorable  occasions  there  arose  a  murmuring  of  the 
people  against  God,  when  His  ways  crossed  their  will, 
or  seemed  dark  to  their  wisdom  ;  just  as,  on  such 
occasions,  there  broke  out  among  the  people  the  ex- 
pression of  doubt,  dislike,  and  disputation,  and  they 
criticised  those  Divine  dealings  which  should  have  been 
received  with  trust  and  lowliness, — so  is  it  also,  many 
a  time,  in  the  little  world  within  us.  There  are  such 
and  such  duties  to  be  discharged  and  such  and  such 
trials  to  be  encountered — or  else  a  general  course  of 
duty  is  to  be  pursued  under  certain  discouragements 
and  perplexities.  And,  you  submit,  you  do  these  things. 
But  you  do  them  with  murmuring  and  disputing  in 
your  heart.  Why  should  it  be  thus  ?  '*  How  is  it  fit," 
you  say,  "that  such  perplexities  or  such  burdens  should 
be  appointed  ?  Is  it  not  reasonable,  all  things  con- 
sidered, that  I  should  have  more  indulgence  and  greater 
facilities  ;  or,  at  least,  that  I  should  be  excused  from 
this  conflict  and  this  burden-bearing  for  the  present  ?  " 
Meanwhile  our  conscience  is  satisfied  because  we  have 
not  rebelled  in  practice ;  and  it  takes  no  strict  ac- 
count of  the  fretfulness  which  marred  our  act,  or 
the    grumbling    which     well-nigh    withheld    us    from 


142  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


compliance.     You  are  called,  perhaps,  to  speak  to  some 
erring  friend,  or  you  have  to  go  on  a  message  of  mercy 
to  some  one  in  affliction.     Indolently  you  postpone  it ; 
and  your  heart  begins  to  stretch  out  its  arms  and  to 
cling  to  the  careless  temper  it  has  begun  to   indulge. 
At   last   conscience   stirs,    conscience  is   up,   and  you 
have   to    do    something.     But    what   you    do    is    done 
grudgingly,  with  a  heart   that  is  murmuring  and  dis- 
puting.    Again,  you  are  called  to  deny  yourself  some 
worldly  pleasure ;  in  Christian  consistency  you  have  to 
hold  back  from  some  form  of  dissipation ;  or  you  have 
to  take  up  a  position  of  singularity  and  separation  from 
other  people.     Reluctantly,  you   comply ;  only  '^  mur- 
muring and  disputing."     Now  this  inward  temper  may 
never  come   to    any   man's    knowledge,   but    shall   we 
suppose   it    does   not    tell   on    the  character   and   the 
influence  of  the  life  ?     Can  you,  in  that  temper,  play 
your  part  with  the  childlike,  the  cheerful,  the  dignified 
bearing,  with  the  resemblance  to  Christ  in  your  action, 
which  God  calls  for  ?     You  cannot.     The  duty  as  to 
the  husk  and  shell  of  it  may  be  done ;  but  there  can 
be  little  radiation  of  Christ's  likeness  in  the  doing  of  it. 
Notice  the  Apostle's  conception  of  the  function  which 
believers  are  to  discharge  in  the  world.     They  are  set 
in  the  midst  of  a  crooked  and  perverse  nation.     These 
words  were  applied  to  the  children  of  Israel  of  old  on 
account   of  the    stubborn    insubordination  with  which 
they  dealt  with  God ;   and  they  were    appHcable,   for 
the  same  reason,  to   the  Gentiles,  among   whom   the 


ii.  12-18.]  IVORKING  AND   SHINING.  143 

gospel  had  come,  but  who  had  not  bowed  to  it.  Judged 
by  the  high  and  true  standard,  these  Gentiles  were 
crooked  and  perverse  in  their  ways  with  one  another, 
and  still  more  so  in  their  ways  with  God.  Among 
them  the  Christians  were  to  show  what  Christianity 
was,  and  what  it  could  do.  In  the  Christians  was 
to  appear,  embodied,  the  testimony  proposed  to  the 
crooked  and  perverse  nation,  a  testimony  against  its 
perverseness,  and  yet  revealing  a  remedy  for  it.  In 
the  persons  of  men,  themselves  originally  crooked  and 
perverse,  this  was  to  become  plain  and  legible.  Now 
how  ?  Why,  by  their  being  blameless  and  harmless, 
the  sons  of  God  without  rebuke. 

It  has  been  remarked  already  that  the  special  way 
in  which  we  are  to  manifest  to  the  world  the  light  ot 
Christianity  is  here  represented  as  the  way  of  blame- 
lessness.  That  man  aright  represents  the  mind  of 
Christ  to  the  world,  who  in  the  world  keeps  himself 
unspotted  from  the  world, — in  whom  men  recognise 
a  character  that  traces  up  to  a  purer  source  elsewhere. 
As  years  pass,  as  cross  lights  fall  upon  the  life,  even 
in  its  most  common  and  private  workings,  if  it  still 
proves  that  the  man  is  cleansed  by  the  faith  he  holds, 
if  the  unruly  working  of  interest,  and  passion,  and  will, 
give  way  in  him  to  motives  of  a  higher  strain,  men 
will  be  impressed.  They  will  own  that  here  is  some- 
thing rare  and  high,  and  that  some  uncommon  cause 
is  at  the  bottom  of  it.  For  the  world  knows  well  that 
even  the  better  sort  of  men  have  their  weaker  side, 


144  THE  EPISTLE    TO   THE  PHHIPPIANS. 


often  plainly  enough  revealed  by  the  trials  of  time. 
Therefore  steadfast  purity  makes,  at  last,  a  deep 
impression. 

Innocence  indeed  is  not  the  whole  duty  of  a  Christian; 
active  virtue  is  required  as  well.  The  harmlessness 
called  for  is  not  a  mere  negative  quality — it  is  supposed 
to  be  exhibited  in  an  active  life  which  strives  to  put  on 
Christ  Jesus.  But  the  Apostle  seems  to  lay  stress 
especially  on  a  certain  quiet  consistency,  on  a  lowly 
and  loving  regard  to  the  whole  standard,  which  gives 
evenness  and  worthiness  to  the  life.  If  you  will  do 
a  Christian's  office  to  the  '^  perverse  nation,"  you  have 
to  seek  that  they  may  have  nothing  against  you  except 
concerning  the  law  of  your  God  ;  you  have  to  seek 
that  your  reproach  may  be  exclusively  the  reproach  of 
Christ :  so  that  if  at  any  time  the  malice  of  men  seeks 
to  misconstrue  your  actions,  and  lays  to  your  charge 
things  which  you  know  not,  your  well-doing  may  silence 
them ;  and  having  no  evil  thing  to  say  of  you,  they 
may  be  ashamed  that  falsely  accuse  your  good  con- 
versation in  Christ. 

Strong  appeals  are  made  in  our  day  to  members  of 
the  Christian  Church  to  engage  actively  in  all  kinds  of 
Christian  work.  They  are  summoned  to  go  forth 
aggressively  upon  the  world's  miser}^  and  sin.  This 
has  become  a  characteristic  note  of  our  time.  Such 
appeals  were  needed.  It  is  a  shame  that  so  many 
Christians  have  absolved  themselves  from  the  obli- 
gation   to  place  at  their  Lord's  service  the  aptitudes 


ii.  12-18.]  WORKING  AND  SHINING.  145 


and  the  energies  with  which  He  has  endowed  them. 
Yet  in  this  wholesale  administration  diversities  are  apt 
to  be  overlooked.  Christians  may  be  undervalued  who 
do  not  possess  qualities  fitting  them  for  the  special 
activities ;  or,  attempting  these  without  much  aptitude, 
and  finding  little  success,  they  may  be  unduly  cast  down. 
It  is  important  to  lay  stress  on  this.  There  are  some, 
perhaps  we  should  say  many^  who  must  come  to  the 
conclusion,  if  they  judge  aright,  that  their  gifts  and 
opportunities  indicate  for  them,  cis  their  sphere,  a  some- 
what narrow  round  of  duties,  mostly  of  that  ordinary 
type  which  the  common  experience  of  human  life  sup- 
plies. But  if  they  bring  into  these  a  Christian  heart ; 
if  they  use  the  opportunities  they  have ;  if  they  are 
watchful  to  please  their  Lord  in  the  life  of  the  family, 
the  workshop,  the  market ;  if  the  purifying  influence  of 
the  faith  by  which  they  live  comes  to  light  in  the  steady 
excellence  of  their  character  and  course, — then  they 
need  have  no  sense  of  exclusion  from  the  work  of  Christ 
and  of  His  Church.  They,  too,  do  missionary  work. 
Blameless,  harmless,  unrebuked,  they  are  seen  as  lights 
in  the  world.  They  contribute,  in  the  manner  that  is 
most  essential  of  all,  to  the  Church's  office  in  the  world. 
And  their  place  of  honour  and  reward  shall  be  far 
above  that  of  many  a  Christian  busybody,  who  is  too 
much  occupied  abroad  to  keep  the  light  clear  and  bright 
at  home. 

Blameless,  then,  harmless,  unaspersed,  must  the  chil- 
dren of  God,  His  redeemed  children,  be.     So  will  the 

10 


146  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

light  of  Christian  character  come  clearty  out,  and  Chris- 
tians will  be  *'  luminaries,  holding  forth  the  word  of  Hfe." 
The  word  of  life  is  the  message  of  salvation  as  it  sets 
forth  to  us  Christ,  and  goodness  and  blessedness  by 
Him.  Substantially  it  is  that  teaching  which  we  have 
in  the  Scriptures  ;  although,  when  Paul  wrote,  the  New 
Testament  was  not  yet  a  treasure  of  the  Churches,  and 
the  ''  word  of  life  "  only  echoed  to  and  fro  from  teacher 
to  taught,  and  from  one  disciple  to  another.  Still,  the 
teaching  rested  on  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures  under- 
stood in  the  light  of  the  testimony  of  Jesus ;  and  it  was 
controlled  and  guided  by  men  speaking  and  writing  in 
the  Spirit.  What  it  was  therefore  was  very  well 
known,  and  the  influence  of  it  as  the  seed  of  life  eternal 
was  felt.  It  was  for  Christians  to  hold  by  it,  and  to 
hold  it  out  J — the  expression  used  in  ver.  16  may  have 
either  meaning  ;  and  virtually  both  senses  are  here.  In 
order  to  give  light  there  must  be  life.  And  Christian  life 
depends  on  having  in  us  the  word,  quick  and  power- 
ful, which  is  to  dwell  in  us  richly  in  all  wisdom  and 
spiritual  understanding.  This  must  be  the  secret  of 
blameless  Christian  lives  ;  and  so  those  who  have  this 
character  will  give  light,  as  holding  forth  the  word  of 
life.  The  man's  visible  character  itself  does  this.  For 
while  the  word  and  message  of  life  is  to  be  owned, 
professed,  in  fit  times  proclaimed,  yet  the  embodiment 
of  it  in  the  man  is  the  main  point  here,  the  character 
being  formed  and  the  practice  determined  by  the 
"word"  believed.     So  also  we  are  said  to  live  by  the 


ii.  1 2- 1 8.]  WORKING  AND  SHINING.  14? 


faith  of  the  Son  of  God.  The  Hfe  of  faith  on  Him,  is 
the  Hfe  of  having  and  holding  forth   His  word. 

Here,  as  everywhere,  our  Lord  goes  first.  The 
Apostle  John,  speaking  in  his  Gospel  of  the  Eternal 
Word,  trills  us  that  in  Him  was  life,  and  the  life  was 
the  light  of  men.  It  was  not  merely  a  doctrine  of  light ; 
the  life  was  the  light.  As  He  lived,  in  His  whole 
being,  in  His  acting  and  suffering,  in  His  coming  and 
staying  and  departing,  in  Mis  Person  and  in  His 
discharge  of  every  office,  He  manifested  the  Father. 
Still  we  find  it  so ;  as  we  contemplate  Him,  as  His 
words  leads  us  to  Himself,  we  behold  the  glory,  the 
radiance  of  grace  and  truth. 

Now  His  people  are  made  like  Him.  They  too, 
through  the  word  of  life,  become  partakers  of  true  life. 
This  life  does  not  dwell  in  them  as  it  does  in  their  Lord, 
for  He  is  its  original  seat  and  source  ;  hence  they  are 
not  the  light  of  the  world  in  the  same  sense  in  which 
He  is  so.  Still  they  are  luminaries,  they  are  stars  in 
the  world.  By  manifesting  the  genuine  influence  of  the 
word  of  life  which  dwells  in  them,  they  do  make  manifest 
in  the  world  what  truth  and  purity  and  salvation  are. 
This  is  their  calling  ;  and,  in  a  measure,  it  is  their 
attainment. 

The  view  of  the  matter  given  here  may  be  compared 
with  that  in  2  Cor.  iii.  4.  Christ,  the  Father's  Word, 
may  also  be  regarded  as  the  Father's  living  Epistle. 
Then  those  who  behold  Him,  and  drink  in  the  sig- 
nificance   of    this    message,    are    also    themselves,    in 


148  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


their  turn,  Epistles  of  Christ,  known  and  read  of  all 
men. 

So  to  shine  is  the  calling  of  all  believers,  not  of  some 
only ;  each,  according  to  his  opportunities,  may  and 
ought  to  fulfil  it.  God  designs  to  be  glorified,  and  to 
have  His  salvation  justified,  in  this  form.  Christ  has 
said,  in  the  plainest  terms,  ''  Ye  are  the  light  of  the 
world."  But  to  be  so  implies  separateness  from  the 
world,  in  root  and  in  fruits;  and  that  is  for  many  a 
hard  saying.  '*  Ye  are  a  holy  nation,  a  peculiar  people, 
that  ye  should  show  forth  the  praises  of  Him  who 
called  you  out  of  darkness  into  His  marvellous  light." 

In  the  sixteenth  and  following  verses  comes  in  again 
Paul's  own  share  in  the  progress  and  victory  of  the 
Christian  Ufe  in  his  friends.  "  It  would  be  exceeding 
well,"  he  seems  to  say,  "  for  you  ;  how  well,  you  may 
gather  partly  from  learning  how  well  it  would  be  for  me." 
He  would  have  cause  to  ''  rejoice  in  the  day  of  Christ " 
that  he  had  "  not  run  in  vain,  neither  laboured  in  vain." 
What  might  be  said  on  this  has  been  anticipated  in 
the  remarks  made  on  ch.  i.,  ver.  20  fol.  But  here  the 
Apostle  is  thinking  of  something  more  than  the  toil 
and  labour  expended  in  the  work.  More  than  these 
was  to  fall  to  his  lot.  His  life  of  toil  was  to  close  in  a 
death  of  martyrdom.  And  whether  the  Apostle  was  or 
was  not  enabled  to  foresee  this  certainly,  doubtless  he 
looked  forward  to  it  as  altogether  probable.  So  he 
says  :  "  But  if  I  be  offered  (or  poured  out  as  a  drink- 
otfering)  in  the  sacrifice  and  service  of  your  faith,  I 


ii.  12-18.J  IVORKINC.   AND  SHIXING.  149 


joy  and  rejoice  with  you  all ;  and  do  ye  also  likewise 
joy  and  rejoice  with  me." 

To  see  the  force  of  this  expression  we  must  remem- 
ber that  it  was  an  ancient  custom  to  seal  and  complete 
a  sacrifice  by  the  pouring  out  of  a  libation  on  the  altar 
or  at  the  foot  of  it.  This  might  be  intended  as  the 
crowning  testimony  of  the  abundant  freewill  with  which 
the  service  had  been  rendered  and  the  sacrifice  had  been 
offered.  To  some  such  rite  the  Apostle  alludes  when 
he  speaks  of  himself — that  is  to  say,  of  his  own  life — 
as  poured  forth  at  the  sacrifice  and  service  of  their  faith. 
And  it  is  not  hard  to  understand  the  idea  which  dictates 
this  mode  of  speech. 

We  read  in  Romans  xii.  an  exhortation  to  the  saints 
to  yield  themselves  a  living  sacrifice^  which  sacrifice  is 
their  reasonable  service.  They  were  to  do  so  in  the 
way  of  not  being  conformed  to  the  world,  but  trans- 
formed by  the  renewing  of  their  minds.  So  here  :  the 
course  of  conduct  which  the  Apostle  had  been  exhorting 
the  Philippians  to  pursue  was  an  act  of  worship  or 
service,  and  in  particular  it  was  a  sacrifice,  the  sacrifice 
of  their  faith,  the  sacrifice  in  which  their  faith  was 
expressed.  Each  believer  in  offering  this  sacrifice  acts 
as  a  priest,  being  a  member  of  the  holy  priesthood 
which  ofters  to  God  spiritual  sacrifices  (i  Peter  ii.  5). 
Such  a  man  is  not,  indeed,  a  priest  to  make  atonement, 
but  he  is  a  priest  to  p;esent  offerings  through  Christ 
his  Head.  The  Philippians,  then,  in  so  far  as  they 
were,  or  were  to  be,  yielding  themselves  in  this  manner 


I50  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


to  God,  were  priests  who   offered   to  God  a  spiritual 
sacrifice. 

Here  let  us  notice,  as  we  pass,  that  no  religion  is  worth 
the  name  that  has  not  its  sacrifice  through  which  the 
worshipper  expresses  his  devotion.  And  in  Christian 
religion  the  sacrifice  is  the  consecration  of  the  man  and 
of  his  life  to  God's  service  in  Christ.  Let  us  all  see 
to  it  what  sacrifices  we  offer. 

This  doctrine,  then,  of  the  priesthood  and  the  sacrifice 
was  verified  in  the  case  of  the  Philippians  ;  and,  by  the 
same  rule,  it  held  true  also  in  the  case  of  Paul  himself. 
He,  as  little  as  they,  was  priest  to  make  atonement. 
But  certainly  when  we  see  Paul  so  cordially  yielding 
himself  to  the  service  of  God  in  the  gospel,  and  dis- 
charging his  work  with  such  willing  labour  and  pains, 
we  see  in  him  one  of  Christ's  priests  offering  himself  to 
God  a  living  sacrifice.  Now  is  this  all  ?  or  is  some- 
thing more  to  be  said  of  Paul  ?  More  is  to  be  said ; 
and  although  the  point  now  in  view  is  not  prominent 
in  this  passage,  it  is  present  as  the  underlying  thought. 
For  the  whole  sacrifice  of  holy  life  rendered  by  the 
Philippians,  and  by  his  other  converts,  was,  in  a  sense, 
the  offering  of  Paul  also  ;  not  theirs  only,  but  his  too. 
God  gave  him  a  standing  in  the  matter,  which  he,  at 
least,  was  not  to  overlook.  God's  grace,  indeed,  had 
wrought  the  work,  and  Paul  was  but  an  instrument ; 
yet  so  an  instrument,  that  he  had  a  living  and  abiding 
interest  in  the  result.  He  was  not  an  instrument 
mechanically  interposed,  but  one  whose  faith  and  love 


11.  I2-I8.]  WORKING  AND  SHINING.  151 

had  wrought  to  bring  the  result  to  pass.    To  him  it  had 
been  given  to  labour  and  pray,  to  watch  and  guide,  to 
spend  and  to  be  spent.    And  when  the  Apostle  saw  the 
lives    of  many    true  followers  of  Christ  unfold  as  the 
result  of  his  ministry,  he  could  think  that  God  owned 
his  place  too  in  bringing  all  this  tribute  to  the  temple. 
"  God   grants  me  a  standing   in    the    service    of   this 
offering.    The  Philippians  bring  it,  each  for  himself,  and 
it  is  theirs  ;  but  I  also  bring  it,  and  it  is  my  offering 
too.     God  takes  it  at  their  hand,  but  also  at  my  hand, 
as  something  which  with  all  my  heart  I  have  laboured 
for  and  won,  and  brought  to  His  footstool.     I  also  have 
my  place  to  present  to  Christ  the  sacrifice  and  service 
of  faith  of  all  these  men  who  are  living  fruits  of  my 
ministry.     I    have    been    minister   of  Christ  to   these 
Gentiles,  'ministering  the  gospel  of  the  grace  of  God, 
that  the  offering  up  of  these  Gentiles  might  be  accept- 
able,  being    sanctified    by  the   Holy  Ghost.     I    have 
therefore  whereof  I  may  glory  through  Jesus  Christ '  " 
(Rom.  XV.  16,  17). 

There  remains  but  one  step  to  be  made,  to  reach  the 
seventeenth  verse.  Consider  the  Apostle's  heart  glowing 
with  the  thought  that  God  counted  the  holy  fruits  of 
those  believing  lives  to  be  sacrifice  and  service  of  his, 
as  well  as  theirs,  and  accepted  it  not  only  from  their 
hands,  but  from  Paul's  too.  Consider  the  gladness  with 
which  he  felt  that  after  all  his  toil  and  pains  he  had  this 
great  offering  to  bring,  as  his  thank-offering  to  his  Lord. 
And  then  imagine   him   hearing  a   voice   which  says : 


152  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


"  Now  then,  seal  your  service,  crown  your  offering ;  be 
yourself  the  final  element  of  sacrifice ;  pour  out  your 
life.  You  have  laboured  and  toiled,  spent  years  and 
strength,  very  willingly,  and  most  fruitfully :  that  is 
over  now ;  one  thing  remains  ;  die  for  the  worthy  name 
of  Him  who  died  for  you."  It  is  this  he  is  contem- 
plating :  lil  be  poured  out  at  the  sacrifice  and  service 
of  your  faith ;  if  I  am  called  to  go  on  and  to  complete 
the  sacrifice  and  service ;  if  one  thing  more  alone  is  left 
for  Paul  the  aged  and  the  prisoner,  and  that  one  thing 
be  to  lay  down  the  life  whose  labours  are  ending ;  if  the 
life  itself  is  to  run  out  in  one  final  testimony  that  my 
whole  heart,  that  all  I  am  and  have  are  Christ's, — shall 
not  I  rejoice  ?  will  not  you  rejoice  with  me  ?  That  will 
be  the  final  identification  of  my  life  with  your  sacrifice 
and  service.  It  will  be  the  expression  of  God's  accept- 
ing the  completed  gift.  It  will  be  the  libation  that 
crowns  the  service.  I  am  not  to  be  used,  and  then  set 
aside  as  having  no  more  interest  in  the  results.  On  the 
contrary,  your  Christianity  and  mine,  in  the  wonderful 
relation  they  have  to  one  another,  are  to  pass  to  God 
together  as  one  offering.  If,  after  running  and  labouring, 
all  issues  in  my  life  being  finally  poured  out  in  martyr- 
dom, that,  as  it  were,  identifies  me  finally  and  inseparably 
with  the  sacrifice  and  service  which  has  filled  your 
lives,  and  also  my  life  It  becomes  one  complete 
offering. 

It  may  give  cause  for  thought  to  ministers   of  the 
gospel  that  the  Apostle  should  so  vitally  and  vividly 


ii.  1 2- 1 8.]  WORKING  AND  SHINING.  153 


connect  himself  with  the  results  of  his  work.  It  was 
no  languid,  no  perfunctory  ministry  that  led  up  to  this 
high  mood.  His  heart's  blood  had  been  in  it ;  the 
strength  and  passion  of  his  love  to  Christ  had  been 
poured  out  and  spent  on  his  work  and  his  converts. 
Therefore  he  could  feel  that  in  some  gracious  and 
blessed  way  the  fruits  that  came  were  still  his — given 
to  ///;;/  to  bring  to  the  altar  of  the  Lord.  How  well 
shall  it  be  with  the  Churches  when  the  ministry  of  their 
pastors  burns  with  a  flame  like  this  !  What  an  image 
of  the  pastoral  care  is  here  expressed  ! 

But  may  not  all  Christian  hearts  be  stirred  to  see 
the  devotedness  and  the  love  which  filled  this  man's 
soul  ?  The  constraining  power  of  the  love  of  Christ  so 
wrought  in  him  that  he  triumphed  and  rejoiced  both  in 
bringing  and  in  becoming  an  offering, — breaking  out,  as 
it  were,  into  sacrifice  and  service,  and  pouring  out  his  life 
an  offering  to  the  Father  and  the  Son.  All  hearts  may 
be  stirred ;  for  all,  perhaps,  can  imagine  such  a  mood. 
But  how  many  of  us  have  it  as  a  principle  and  a 
passion  entering  into  our  own  lives  ? 


TIMOTHY  AND  EPAPHRODITUS. 


"  But  I  hope  in  the  Lord  Jesus  to  send  Timothy  shortly  unto  you, 
that  I  also  may  be  of  good  comfort,  when  I  know  your  state.  For  I 
have  no  man  likeminded,  who  will  care  truly  [genuinely]  for  your 
state.  For  they  all  seek  their  own,  not  the  things  of  Jesus  Christ. 
But  ye  know  the  proof  of  him,  that,  as  a  child  serveth  a  father,  so  he 
served  with  me  in  furtherance  of  the  gospel.  Him  therefore  I  hope  to 
send  forthwith,  so  soon  as  I  shall  see  how  it  will  go  with  me :  but  I 
trust  in  the  Lord  that  I  myself  also  shall  come  shortly.  But  I  counted 
it  necessary  to  send  to  j^ou  Epaphroditus,  my  brother  and  fellow- 
worker  and  fellow-soldier,  and  your  messenger  and  minister  to  my 
need ;  since  he  longed  after  you  all,  and  was  sore  troubled,  because 
ye  had  heard  that  he  was  sick :  for  indeed  he  was  sick  nigh  unto 
death  :  but  God  had  mercy  on  him ;  and  not  on  him  only,  but  on  me 
also,  that  I  might  not  have  sorrow  upon  sorrow.  I  have  sent  him 
therefore  the  more  diligently,  that,  when  ye  see  him  again,  ye  may 
rejoice,  and  that  I  may  be  the  less  sorrowful.  Receive  him  therefore 
in  the  Lord  with  all  joy;  and  hold  such  in  honour:  because  for 
the  work  of  Christ  he  came  nigh  unto  death,  hazarding  his  life  to 
supply  that  which  was  lacking  in  your  service  toward  mc." — Phil. 
ii.  19-30  (R.V.). 


156 


CHAPTER    IX. 

TIMOTHY  AND  EPAPHRODITUS. 

THE  outpouring  of  his  thoughts,  his  feehngs,  and 
his  desires  towards  the  PhiHppians  has  so  far 
spent  itself.  Now  he  turns  to  mention  the  steps  he  is 
taking,  in  response  to  their  communication,  to  express 
practically  his  love  and  his  care  for  their  welfare.  Yet 
we  must  carry  along  with  us  what  has  just  been  said 
of  the  Christian  service  and  sacrifice,  and  of  the  tie 
between  the  Apostle  and  his  converts;  for  these  thoughts 
are  still  in  the  Apostle's  mind,  and  they  gleam  through 
the  passage  which  now  comes  before  us. 

Paul  had  been  contemplating  the  possibility  of  dying 
soon  in  his  Master's  cause :  no  doubt  it  was  an  alter- 
native often  present  to  his  mind ;  and  we  see  with 
what  a  glow  of  high  association  it  rose  before  him. 
Still  he,  like  ourselves,  had  to  await  his  Master's  will, 
had  meanwhile  to  carry  on  the  business  of  his  life,  and 
indeed  (ch.  i.  25)  was  aware  that  the  prolongation  of  his 
life  might  very  likely  be  a  course  of  things  more  in  the 
line   of  God's   purpose,  and   more   serviceable    to   the 

Churches  at  Philippi  and  elsewhere.     So,  while  he  has 

157 


158  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE   PHHIPPIANS. 


expressed  the  mood  in  which  both  they  and  he  are  to 
face  the  event  of  his  martyrdom,  when  it  comes,  he  does 
not  hesitate  to  express  the  expectation  that  he  may  be 
set  free  and  may  see  them  again.  Meanwhile  he  has 
made  up  his  mind  ere  long  to  send  Timothy.  Timothy 
will  bring  them  news  of  Paul,  and  will  represent  the 
Apostle  among  them  as  only  a  very  near  and  con- 
fidential friend  could  do ;  at  the  same  time  he  will 
bring  back  to  Paul  an  account  of  things  at  Philippi, 
no  doubt  after  doing  all  that  with  God's  help  he  could 
to  instruct,  correct,  and  edify  the  Church  during  his 
stay.  In  this  way  a  sustaining  and  gladdening  ex- 
perience for  the  Philippian  Christians  would  be  pro- 
vided ;  and,  at  the  same  time,  Paul  too  (I  also,  ver.  19) 
would  be  gladdened  by  receiving  from  so  trustworthy 
a  deputy  a  report  upon  men  and  things  at  Philippi. 
In  connection  with  this  declaration  of  his  intention, 
the  Apostle  reveals  some  of  the  reflections  which 
had  occupied  his  mind ;  and  these  suggest  several 
lessons. 

I.  Notice  the  spirit  of  selt-sacrifice  on  Paul's  part. 
Timothy  was  the  one  thoroughly  trusted  and  congenial 
friend  within  his  reach.  To  a  man  who  was  a  prisoner, 
and  on  whom  the  burden  of  many  anxieties  fell,  it  was 
no  small  ease  to  have  one  such  friend  beside  him.  Our 
blessed  Lord  Himself  craved  for  loving  human  fellow- 
ship in  His  time  of  sorrow ;  and  so  must  Paul  do  also. 
Yet  all  must  give  way  to  the  comfort  and  well-being  of 
the  Churches.     As  soon  as  Paul  can  descry  how  it  is  to 


ii.  19-30.]         TIMOTHY  AND  EPAPIIRODITUS.  IS9 

go  with  him,  so  that  plans  may  be  adjusted  to  the  hke- 
lihoods  of  the  situation,  Timothy  is  to  go  on  his  errand 
to  Philippi. 

2.  Notice  the  importance  which  may  justly  attach 
to  human  instrumentalities.  One  is  not  as  good  as 
another.  Some  are  far  more  fit  for  use  than  others  are. 
The  Apostle  thought  earnestly  on  the  point  who  was 
fittest  to  go,  and  he  was  glad  he  had  a  man  like 
Timothy  to  send.  It  is  true  that  the  supreme  source  of 
success  in  gospel  work  is  God  Himself;  and  sometimes 
He  gives  unexpected  success  to  unlikely  instruments. 
But  yet,  as  a  rule,  much  depends  on  men  being  adapted 
to  their  work.  When  God  prepares  fresh  blessing  for 
His  Church,  He  commonly  raises  up  men  fitted  for  the 
service  to  be  rendered.  Therefore  we  do  well  to  pray 
earnestly  for  men  eminently  qualified  to  do  the  Lord's 
work. 

3.  Timothy's  special  fitness  for  this  mission  was  that 
he  had  a  heart  to  care  for  them,  especially  to  care  for 
their  true  and  highest  interests.  So  far,  he  resembled 
Paul  himself.  He  had  the  true  pastoral  heart.  He 
had  caught  the  lessons  of  Paul's  own  life.  That  was 
the  main  thing.  No  doubt  he  had  intellectual  gifts, 
but  his  dispositions  gave  him  the  right  use  of  gifts. 
The  loving  heart,  and  the  watchfulness  and  thoughtful- 
ness  which  that  inspires,  do  more  to  create  pastoral 
wisdom  than  any  intellectual  superiority.  Timothy  had 
a  share  of  the  "  mind  "  of  Christ  (ver.  5),  and  that  made 
him  meet  to  be  a  wise  inspector  and  adviser  for   the 


i6o  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


Philippians,  as  well  as  a  trustworthy  reporter  concerning 
their  state  and  prospects. 

4.  What  is  most  fitted  to  impress  us,  is  the  difficulty 
which  Paul  experienced  in  finding  a  suitable  messenger, 
and  the  manner  in  which  he  describes  his  dififlculty. 
He  was  conscious  in  himself  of  a  self-forgetting  love 
and  care  for  the  Churches,  which  was  part,  and  a  great 
part,  of  his  Christian  character.  He  was  ready  (i  Cor. 
X-  33)  ^o  please  all  men  in  all  things,  not  seeking  his 
own  profit,  but  the  profit  of  many,  that  they  might  be 
saved.  He  looked  out  for  men  among  his  friends 
whose  hearts  might  answer  to  him  here,  but  he  did  not 
find  them.  He  had  no  man  likeminded.  One  indeed 
was  found,  but  no  more.  As  he  looked  round,  a  sense 
of  disappointment  settled  on  him. 

One  asks  of  whom  this  statement  is  made — that  he 
finds  none  likeminded — that  all  seek  their  own  ?  Pro- 
bably not  of  Epaphroditus,  for  Epaphroditus  goes  at  any 
rate,  and  the  question  is  about  some  one  in  addition, 
to  be,  as  it  were,  Paul's  representative  and  commis- 
sioner. Nor  are  we  entitled  to  say  that  it  applies  to 
Tychicus,  Aristarchus,  Marcus,  and  Jesus,  mentioned 
in  Colossians  iv.  For  these  men  might  not  be  with 
the  Apostle  at  the  precise  moment  of  his  writing 
to  the  Philippians ;  and  the  character  given  to  them 
in  the  Epistle  to  the  Colossians  seems  to  set  them 
clear  of  the  inculpation  in  this  passage  :  unless  we 
suppose  that,  even  in  the  case  of  some  of  them,  a  failure 
had    emerged    near    the    time    when    the    Epistle    was 


i.  19-30.]         TlMOrilY  AND  EPAPIIRODITUS.  i6i 


written,  which  vexed  the  Apostle,  and  forced  him  to 
judge  them  unprepared  at  present  for  the  service.  It 
will  be  safest,  however,  not  to  assume  that  these  men 
were  with  him,  or  that  they  arc  here  in  view. 

Still,  the  sad  comment  of  the  Apostle  must  apply 
to  men  of  some  standing  and  some  capacity, — men 
of  Christian  profession,  men  who  might  naturally  be 
thought  of  in  connection  with  such  a  task.  As  he 
surveyed  them,  he  was  obliged  to  note  the  deplorable 
defect,  which  perhaps  had  not  struck  himself  so  forcibly 
until  he  began  to  weigh  the  men  against  the  mission  he 
was  planning  for  them.  Then  he  saw  how  they  came 
short ;  and  also,  how  this  same  blight  prevailed  gener- 
ally among  the  Christians  around  him.  Men  were  not 
^'likeminded";  no  man  was  'Mikeminded."  All  seek 
their  own,  not  the  things  which  are  Jesus  Christ's.  Is 
not  this  a  sad  saying  ?  What  might  one  expect  at 
the  outset  of  a  noble  cause,  the  cause  of  Christ's  truth 
and  Church  ?  What  might  one  count  upon  in  the  circle 
that  stood  nearest  to  the  Apostle  Paul  ?  Yet  this  is  the 
account  of  it, — All  seek  their  own,  not  the  things  which 
are  Jesus  Christ's. 

Is  it  any  wonder  that  the  Apostle  pleads  earnestly 
with  Christians  to  cherish  the  mind  of  ''  not  looking 
each  of  you  to  his  own  things  "  (ver.  4)  ;  that  he  presses 
the  great  example  of  the  Saviour  Himself;  that  he 
celebrates  elsewhere  (i  Cor.  xiii.)  the  beauty  of  that 
love  which  seeketh  not  its  own  and  beareth  all  things  ? 
For   we   see   how   the   meaner   spirit    beset   him  and 

1 1 


1 62  THE  EPISTLE  TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

hemmed  him  in,  even    in    the  circle    of  his  Christian 
friends. 

What  does  his  description  mean  ?  It  does  not  mean 
that  the  men  in  question  broke  the  ordinary  Christian 
rules.  It  does  not  mean  that  any  Church  could  have 
disciplined  them  for  provable  sins.  Nay,  it  does  not 
mean  that  they  were  destitute  of  fear  of  God  and  love 
to  Christ.  But  yet,  to  the  Apostle's  eye,  they  were  too 
visibly  swayed  by  the  eagerness  about  their  own  things ; 
so  swayed,  that  their  ordinary  course  was  governed 
and  determined  by  it.  It  might  be  love  of  ease,  it  might 
be  covetousness,  it  might  be  pride,  it  might  be  party 
opinion,  it  might  be  family  interests,  it  might  even  be 
concentration  on  their  own  religious  comfort  : — how- 
ever it  might  be,  to  this  it  came  in  the  end,  All  seek 
their  own.  Some  of  them  might  be  quite  unsound, 
deceivers  or  deceived  ;  especially,  for  instance,  if  Demas 
(2  Tim.  iv.  10)  was  one  of  them.  But  even  those  of 
whom  the  Apostle  might  be  persuaded  better  things, 
and  things  that  accompany  salvation,  were  so  far  gone 
in  this  disease  of  seeking  their  own,  that  the  Apostle 
could  have  no  confidence  in  sending  them,  as  otherwise 
he  would  have  done,  on  a  mission  in  which  the  mind 
and  care  of  Christ  were  to  be  expressed  to  Christ's 
Church.     He  could  not  rely  on  a  "  genuine  care." 

You  mistake  if  you  suppose  this  faulty  state  implied, 
in  all  these  cases,  a  deliberate,  conscious  preference  of 
their  own  things  above  the  things  of  Jesus  Christ.  The 
men  might  really  discern  a  supreme  beauty  and  worth 


ii.  19-30.]         TIMOTHY  AND  EPAPHRODITUS.  163 

in  the  things  of  Christ ;  they  might  honestly  judge  that 
Christ  had  a  supreme  claim  on  their  loyalty  ;  and  they 
might  have  a  purpose  to  adhere  to  Christ  and  Christ's 
cause  at  great  cost,  if  the  cost  must  finally  be  borne. 
And  yet  meanwhile,  in  their  common  life,  the  other 
principle  manifested  itself  far  too  victoriously.  The 
place  which  their  own  things  held — the  degree  in  which 
their  life  was  influenced  b}^  the  bearing  of  things  on 
themselves,  was  far  from  occupying  that  subordinate 
place  which  Christ  has  assigned  to  it.  The  things  of 
Jesus  Christ  did  not  rise  in  their  minds  above  other 
interests,  but  were  jostled,  and  crowded,  and  thrust 
aside  by  a  thousand  things  that  were  their  own. 

You  may  not  cherish  any  avowed  purpose  to  seek 
your  own ;  you  may  have  learned  to  love  Christ  for 
the  best  reasons ;  you  may  have  the  root  of  the  matter 
in  you ;  you  may  have  made  some  sacrifices  that 
express  a  sense  of  Christ's  supreme  claims  :  and  yet 
you  may  be  a  poor  style  of  Christian,  an  inconsistent 
Christian,  a  careless,  unwatchful  Christian.  Especially 
you  may  habitually  fail  to  make  a  generous  estimate  of 
the  place  to  be  given  to  the  things  of  Jesus  Christ. 
You  may  not  be  reckoned  so  defective  either  in  general 
judgment  or  in  your  own  esteem,  because  you  may 
come  up  very  well  to  what  is  usually  expected.  And 
yet  you  may  be  allowing  any  Christianity  you  have  to 
be  largely  stifled  and  repressed  by  foreign  and  alien 
influences,  by  a  crowd  of  occupations  and  recreations 
that  steal  heart  and  life  away.     You  may  be  taking  no 


164  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

proper  pains,  no  loving  pains,  to  be  a  Christian,  in 
Christ's  sense  of  what  that  should  be.  Though  only  at 
the  beginning  of  the  conflict,  you  may  be  living  as  if 
there  was  scarcely  a  conflict  to  be  fought.  And  so  in 
practice,  in  the  history  of  your  hours,  you  may  be  seek- 
ing your  own  things  to  an  extent  that  is  even  disgraceful 
to  Christian  religion.  You  may  allow  your  course  of 
thought  and  action  to  be  dictated  by  that  which  is  of 
self,  by  gain,  self-indulgence,  or  frivolity,  to  a  degree 
that  would  even  be  appalling  if  your  eyes  were  opened 
to  discern  it.  We  all  know  that  in  religious  exercises 
formality  may  usurp  a  large  place,  even  in  the  case  of 
men  who  have  received  power  for  reality.  Just  so  in 
the  Christian  course,  and  under  the  Christian  name  and 
calUng,  what  is  "  your  own  "  may  be  suffered  to  encroach 
most  lamentably  on  the  higher  principle  ;  so  that  an 
Apostle  looking  at  you  must  say,  *'  They  all  seek  their 
own,  not  the  things  that  are  Jesus  Christ's."  You  are 
not  faithful  enough  to  apply  Christ's  standard  to  your 
heart  and  ways,  nor  diligent  enough  to  seek  His  Spirit. 
Perhaps  if  you  were  strongly  tempted  to  deny  Christ, 
or  to  fall  into  some  great  scandalous  sin,  you  would 
awaken  to  the  danger  and  cHng  to  your  Saviour  for 
your  life.  But  as  things  go  commonly,  you  let  them 
go.  And  the  consequence  is,  you  are  largely  losing 
your  lives.  What  should  be  your  contribution  to  the 
good  cause,  and  so  should  be  your  own  gladness  and 
honour,  never  comes  to  pass.  Some  of  you  have 
thoughts  in  your  own  minds  upon  this  point,  why  you 


ii.  19-30.]        TIMOTHY  AND  EPAPHRODITUS.  165 

do  not  seem  to  find  any  doorways  into  Christian  useful- 
ness. You  do  wish  to  see  Christ's  cause  prosper.  Yet 
somehow  it  never  seems  to  come  to  your  hands  to  do 
anything  effectually  or  fruitfully  for  the  cause.  What 
can  the  reason  be  ?  Alas,  in  the  case  of  how  many  the 
reason  is  just  what  it  was  in  the  case  of  Paul's  friends  : 
you  are  so  largely  seeking  your  own  things,  not  the 
things  that  are  Jesus  Christ's,  that  you  are  not  fit  to  be 
sent  on  any  mission.  If  the  Apostle  could  say  this  to  the 
Christians  of  his  day,  how  great  must  be  the  danger  still  ! 
Now  if  we  look  at  it  as  part  of  the  experience  of 
Paul  the  Apostle,  to  find  this  temper  so  prevailing 
around  him,  we  learn  another  lesson.  We  know 
Paul's  character,  his  enthusiasm,  the  magnanimous 
faith  and  love  with  which  he  counted  all  to  be  loss  in 
comparison  of  Christ.  And  yet,  we  see  what  he  found 
among  the  Christians  around  him.  This  has  been  so 
in  every  age.  The  unreasonableness,  faintheartedness, 
and  faithlessness  of  men,  the  unchristlikeness  of  Chris- 
tians, have  been  matter  of  experience.  If  our  hearts 
were  enlarged  to  plan  and  endeavour  more  generously 
for  Christ's  cause,  we  should  feel  this  a  great  trial.  All 
large-hearted  Christians  have  to  encounter  it.  Let  it 
be  remembered  that  it  is  not  peculiar  to  any  age.  The 
Apostle  had  full  experience  of  it.  "  Demas  hath  for- 
saken me,  having  loved  this  present  world.  .  .  .  Alex- 
ander the  coppersmith  did  me  much  evil.  ...  At  my 
first  answer  no  man  stood  with  me,  but  all  men  forsook 
me"   (2   Tim.  iv.    10-16).     Let  us  be   assured,  that   if 


i66  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

Christ's  work  is  to  be  done,  we  must  be  prepared  not 
only  for  the  opposition  of  the  world,  but  for  the  coldness 
and  the  disapprobation  of  many  in  the  Church — of  some 
whom  we  cordially  believe  to  be,  after  all,  heirs  of  the 
kingdom. 

Timothy  is  to  go  to  Philippi,  and  is  to  bring  to  Paul 
a  full  report.  But,  at  the  same  time,  the  Apostle  finds 
it  necessary  to  send  Epaphroditus,  not,  apparently,  with 
a  view  to  his  returning  to  Rome  again,  but  to  resume 
his  residence  at  Philippi.  It  seems,  on  all  accounts, 
reasonable  to  believe  that  Epaphroditus  belonged  to 
the  Philippian  Church,  and  was  in  office  there.  In 
this  case  he  is  to  be  distinguished  from  Epaphras 
(Col.  iv.  12),  with  whom  some  would  identify  him,  for 
no  doubt  Epaphras  belonged  to  Colossse.  Epaphro- 
ditus had  come  to  Roriie,  bearing  with  him  the  gifts 
which  assured  Paul  of  the  loving  remembrance  in  which 
he  was  held  at  Philippi,  and  of  the  abiding  desire  to 
minister  to  him  which  was  cherished  there.  His  own 
Christian  zeal  led  Epaphroditus  to  undertake  the  duty, 
and  he  had  borne  himself  in  it  as  became  a  warm- 
hearted and  public-spirited  Christian.  He  had  been 
Paul's  brother  and  fellow-workman  and  fellow-soldier. 
But,  meanwhile,  the  Apostle  was  aware  how  valuable 
his  presence  might  be  felt  to  be  at  Philippi.  And  Epa- 
phroditus himself  had  conceived  a  longing  to  see  the 
old  friends,  and  to  resume  the  old  activities  in  the 
Philippian  Church.  For  he  had  been  sick,  very  sick, 
almost  dead.     Amid    the    weakness   and    inactivity   of 


ii.  19-30.]  TIMOTHY  AND   EPAPHRODITUS.  167 


convalescence,  his  thoughts  had  been  much  at  Philippi, 
imagining  how  the  brethren  there  might  be  moved  at 
the  tidings  of  his  state,  and  yearning,  perhaps,  for  the 
faces  and  the  voices  which  he  knew  so  well.  Paul 
was  accustomed  to  restrain  and  sacrifice  his  own  feel- 
ings ;  but  that  did  not  make  him  inattentive  to  the 
feelings  of  other  people.  Trying  as  his  position  at 
Rome  was,  he  would  not  keep  Epaphroditus  in  these 
circumstances.  He  had  had  great  comfort  in  his  com- 
pany, and  would  be  glad  to  retain  it.  But  he  would  be 
more  glad  to  think  of  the  joy  at  Philippi  when  Epa- 
phroditus should  return.  So  he  gives  back  Epaphro- 
ditus. As  he  does  so  he  admonishes  his  friends  to  value 
adequately  what  they  are  receiving.  Paul  was  sending 
to  them  a  true-hearted  and  large-hearted  Christian ; 
one  who  allowed  nothing — neither  difficulties  nor  risks 
— to  stand  in  the  way  of  Christian  service  and  Christian 
sympathy.  Let  such  men  be  had  in  reputation.  It  is 
a  lawful  and  right  thing  to  make  a  high  estimate  of 
Christian  character  where  it  eminently  appears,  and  to 
honour  such  persons  very  highly  in  love.  If  they  are 
not  honoured  and  prized,  it  is  too  likely  that  others 
will  be  whom  it  is  not  so  fit  and  so  wholesome  to 
admire.  And  the  ground  of  admiration  in  the  case  of 
Epaphroditus  sets  once  more  before  us  the  theme  of 
the  whole  chapter :  Epaphroditus  was  to  be  had  in 
reputation  because  he  had  approved  himself  to  be  one 
seeking  not  his  own,  one  willing  to  lay  down  his  life 
for  the  brethren. 


NO   CONFIDENCE  IN  THE  FLESH. 


169 


"Finally,  my  brethren,  rejoice  in  the  Lord.  To  write  the  same 
things  to  you,  to  me  indeed  is  not  irksome,  but  for  you  it  is  safe. 
Beware  of  the  dogs,  beware  of  the  evil  workers,  beware  of  the 
concision  :  for  we  are  the  circumcision,  who  worship  by  the  Spirit  of 
God,  and  glory  in  Christ  Jesus,  and  have  no  confidence  in  the  flesh  : 
though  I  myself  might  have  confidence  even  in  the  flesh  :  if  any  other 
man  thinketh  to  have  confidence  in  the  flesh,  I  yet  more :  circumcised 
the  eighth  day,  of  the  stock  of  Israel,  of  the  tribe  of  Benjamin,  a 
Hebrew  of  Hebrews ;  as  touching  the  law,  a  Pharisee  ;  as  touching  zeal, 
persecuting  the  Church ;  as  touching  the  righteousness  which  is  in 
the  law,  found  blameless.  Howbeit  what  things  were  gain  to  me, 
these  have  I  counted  loss  for  Christ.  Yea  verily,  and  I  count  all  things 
to  be  loss  for  the  excellency  of  the  knowledge  of  Christ  Jesus  my 
Lord."— Phil.  iii.  i-8  (R.V.). 


170 


CHAPTER   X. 

NO   CONFIDENCE  IN   THE  FLESH. 

THE  third  chapter  contains  thq  portion  of  this 
Epistle  in  which,  perhaps,  one  is  hardest  put  to 
it  to  keep  pace  with  the  writer.  Here  he  gives  us  one 
of  his  most  remarkable  expositions  of  true  Christian 
religion  as  he  knew  it,  and  as  he  maintains  it  must  essen- 
tially exist  for  others  also.  He  does  this  in  a  burst  of 
thought  and  feeling  expressed  together :  so  that,  if  we 
are  to  take  his  meaning,  the  fire  and  the  light  must 
both  alike  do  their  work  upon  us ;  we  must  feel  and  see 
both  at  once.  This  is  one  of  the  pages  to  which  a 
Bible  reader  turns  again  and  again.  It  is  one  of  the 
passages  that  have  special  power  to  find  and  to  stir 
believing  men. 

Yet  it  seems  to  find  its   place  in  the  letter  almost 
incidentally. 

It  would  seem,  as   some  have  thought,  that  in  the 

first  verse  of  this  chapter  the  Apostle  begins  to  draw 

his  letter  to  a  close.     Cheerful  words  of  farewell  begin 

to    shape    themselves.     At    the    same    time    a    closing 

reference    is    in    view    to    some    practical    danger  that 

171 


172  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

required  to  be  guarded  against.  Almost  suddenly 
things  take  a  new  turn,  and  a  flood  of  great  ideas 
claim  and  take  their  place. 

'*  Finally,  my  brethren,  rejoice  in  the  Lord."  Re- 
joice, Be  of  good  cheer,  was  the  common  formula  of 
leave-taking.  The  same  word  is  translated  *'  farewell  " 
in  2  Cor.  xiii.  ii  (Authorised  and  Revised  Versions). 
But  the  Apostle,  especially  in  this  Epistle,  which  is 
itself  inspired  by  so  much  of  Christian  gladness,  can- 
not but  emphasise  the  proper  meaning  of  the  customary 
phrase.  Rejoice,  yes,  rejoice,  my  brethren,  in  the  Lord. 
The  same  turn  of  thought  recurs  again  in  ch.  iv.  4. 
What  it  is  fitted  to  suggest  will  be  equally  in  place 
when  we  reach  that  point. 

Now  he  seems  to  be  on  the  point  of  introducing 
some  subject  already  referred  to,  either  in  this  or  in 
a  previous  Epistle.  It  concerned  the  safety  of  the 
Philippians,  and  it  required  some  courteous  preface  in 
touching  on  it  once  again ;  so  that,  most  likely,  it  was 
a  point  of  some  delicacy.  Some  have  thought  this  topic 
might  be  the  tendency  to  dissension  which  had  appeared 
in  Philippi.  It  is  a  subject  which  comes  up  again  in  ch.  iv. : 
it  may  have  been  upon  the  point  of  coming  up  here. 
The  closing  words  of  ver.  i  might  well  enough  preface 
such  a  reference.  The  theme  was  not  so  pleasant  as 
some  of  those  on  which  he  had  written  :  it  might  be 
delicate  for  him  to  handle ;  and  it  might  call  for  some 
effort  on  their  part  to  take  it  well.  Yet  it  concerned 
their  safety  that  they  should  fully  realise  this  element 


iii.  1-8.]  NO  CONFIDENCE  IN   THE  FLESH.  173 

of  the  situation,  and  should  take  the  right  view  of  it. 
Therefore  also  the  Apostle  would  not  count  it  irksome  to 
do  his  part  in  relation  to  it.  People  entangled  in  a  fault 
are  in  circumstances  not  favourable  to  a  right  estimate 
of  their  own  case.  They  need  help  from  those  who 
can  judge  more  soundly.  Yet  help  must  be  tendered 
with  a  certain  considerateness. 

But  at  this  point  a  new  impulse  begins  to  operate. 
Perhaps  the  Apostle  was  interrupted,  and,  before  he 
could  resume,  some  news  reaches  him,  awakening 
afresh  the  indignation  with  which  he  always  regarded 
the  tactics  of  the  Judaisers.  Nothing  indicates  that  the 
Philippian  Church  was  much  disposed  to  Judaise.  But 
if  at  this  juncture  some  new  disturbance  from  the 
Judaisers  befell  his  work  at  Rome,  or  if  news  of  that 
kind  reached  him  from  some  other  field,  it  might 
suggest  the  possibility  of  those  sinister  influences 
finding  their  way  also  to  Philippi.  This  is,  of  course, 
a  conjecture  rraerely ;  but  it  is  not  an  unreasonable  one. 
It  has  been  offered  as  an  explanation  of  the  somewhat 
sudden  burst  of  warning  that  breaks  upon  us  in 
ch.  iii.  2 ;  while,  in  the  more  tranquil  strain  of 
ch.  iv.,  topics  are  resumed  which  easily  link  them- 
selves to  ch.  iii.  I.* 


*  In  the  text  Ewald's  suggestion  is  followed,  in  the  form  given  to 
it  by  Lightfoot.  Meyer's  view,  however,  may  seem  simpler  to  some 
readers.  He  thinks  that  "  the  same  things "  of  ch.  iii.  i  are  the 
warnings  against  Judaising  which  actually  follow  in  ver.  2.  Accord- 
ing to  Meyer,  the  Apostle  had  already ,  in  a  previous  Epiotk,  warned 


174  THE  EPISTLE    TO    THE   PHHIPPIANS. 


Still,  even  if  this  denunciation  of  Judaising  comes  in 
rather  unexpectedly,  it  does  not  really  disturb  the  main 
drift  of  the  Epistle,  nor  does  it  interfere  with  the 
lessons  which  the  Philippians  were  to  learn.  It  rather 
contributes  to  enforce  the  views  and  deepen  the  im- 
pressions at  which  Paul  aims.  For  the  denunciation 
becomes  the  occasion  of  introducing  a  glowing  descrip- 
tion of  how  Christ  found  Paul,  and  what  Paul  found  in 
Christ.  This  is  set  against  the  religion  of  Judaising. 
But  at  the  same  time,  and  by  the  nature  of  the  case, 
it  becomes  a  magnificent  exposure  and  rebuke  of  all 
fleshly  religionising,  of  all  the  ways  of  being  religious 
that  are  superficial,  self-confident,  and  worldly-minded. 
It  also  becomes  a  stirring  call  to  what  is  most  central 
and  vital  in  Christian  religion.  If  then  there  was  at 
Philippi,  as  there  is  everywhere,  a  tendency  to  be  too 
easily  contented  with  what  they  had  attained  ;  or  to 
reconcile  Christianity  with  self-seeking ;  or  to  indulge 
a  Christianised  arrogance  and  quarrelsomeness  ;  or,  in 


the  Philippians  against  the  Judaisers,  and  he  considers  it  "  safer  "  for 
them  and  "  not  irksome  "  to  himself  to  repeat  the  admonition.  In 
this  view  the  connection  between  vv.  I  and  2  may  be  stated  in  this 
way :  "  Rejoice  in  the  Lord  ;  and,  need  I  repeat  it  ? — yes,  it  is  better 
that  I  should  repeat  it, — rejoicing  in  the  Lord  is  wholly  contrary  to 
that  boasting  in  the  flesh  which  characterises  some  great  religious 
pretenders  well  known  to  you  and  me.  Beware  of  them !  The 
energetic  scorn  of  the  phrasing  is  explained  by  supposing  that  the 
circumstances  and  the  argument  of  the  former  Epistle  had  led  to  this 
animated  denunciation,  so  that  the  Apostle  recapitulates  phrases 
that  were  well  remembered  in  the  Philippian  congregation. 


iii.  1-8.]  NO   CONFIDENCE   IN   THE  FLESH.  175 


any  other  shape,  "  having  begun  in  the  spirit  to  be  made 
perfect  in  the  flesh,"— here  was  exactly  what  they 
needed.  Here,  too,  they  might  find  a  vivid  repre- 
sentation of  the  "one  spirit"  in  which  they  were  to 
"stand  fast,"  the  "one  soul"  in  which  they  were  to 
"labour"  together  (ch.  i.  27).  That  "one  spirit"  is 
the  mind  which  is  caught,  held,  vitalised,  continually 
drawn  upwards  and  forwards,  by  the  revelation  and 
the  appropriation  of  Christ. 

The  truth  is  that  a  remiss  Christianity  always  be- 
comes very  much  a  Judaism.  Such  Christianity  assumes 
that  a  life  of  respectable  conventions,  carried  on  within 
sacred  institutions,  will  please  God  and  save  our  souls. 
What  the  Apostle  has  to  set  against  Judaism  may  very 
well  be  set  against  that  in  all  its  forms. 

"  Keep  an  eye  on  the  dogs,  on  the  evil  workers,  on 
the  concision."  The  Judaisers  are  not  to  occupy  him 
very  long,  but  we  see  they  are  going  to  be  thoroughly 
disposed  of.  Dogs  is  a  term  borrowed  from  their  own 
vocabulary.  They  classed  the  Gentiles  (even  the 
uncircumcised  Christians)  as  dogs,  impure  beings  who 
devoured  all  kinds  of  meat  and  were  open  to  all  kinds 
of  uncleanness.  But  themselves,  the  Apostle  intimates, 
were  the  truly  impure,  shutting  themselves  out  from  the 
true  purity,  the  heart's  purity,  and  (as  Dr.  Lightfoot  ex- 
presses it)  "  devouring  the  garbage  of  carnal  ordinances." 
They  were  also  evil  workers,  mischievous  busybodies, 
pertinaciously  busy,  but  busy  to  undo  rather  than  to 
build    up    what    is    good,    "  subverting    men's    souls " 


176  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PmUPPIANS. 


(Acts  XV.  24).  And  they  were  the  concision ;  not  the 
circumcision  according  to  the  true  intent  of  that  ordi- 
nance, but  the  concision,  the  mutilation  or  gashing. 
Circumcision  was  a  word  which  carried  in  its  heart  a 
high  meaning  of  separation  from  evil  and  of  consecration 
to  the  Lord.  That  meaning  (and  therefore  also  the 
word  which  carried  it)  pertained  to  gospel  believers, 
whether  outwardly  circumcised  or  not.  For  the  Juda- 
ising  zealots  could  be  claimed  only  a  circumcision 
which  had  lost  its  sense,  and  which  no  more  deserved 
the  name, — a  senseless  gashing  of  the  flesh,  a  concision. 
All  these  terms  seem  to  be  levelled  at  certain  persons 
who  are  in  the  Apostle's  view,  and  are  not  unknown  to 
the  Philippians,  though  not  necessarily  resident  in  that 

city. 

For  any  full  statement  of  the  grounds  of  the  Apostle's 
indignation  at  the  Judaising  propaganda,  the  reader 
must  be  referred  to  the  expository  writings  on  other 
Epistles,  especially  on  those  to  the  Corinthians  and  to 
the  Galatians.  Here  a  few  words  must  suffice.  Juda- 
ising made  the  highest  pretensions  to  religious  security 
and  success ;  it  proposed  to  expound  the  only  worthy 
and  genuine  view  of  man's  relation  to  God.  But  in 
reaHty  the  Judaisers  wholly  misrepresented  Christianity, 
for  they  had  missed  the  main  meaning  of  it.  Judaising 
turned  men's  minds  away  from  what  was  highest  to 
what  was  lowest, — from  love  to  law,  from  God's  gifts 
to  man's  merits,  from  inward  life  and  power  to  outward 
ceremonial  performance,  from  the  spiritual  and  eternal 


111. 


I-8.J  NO   CONFIDEXCE  IN   THE  FLESH.  177 


to  the  material  and  the  temporary.  It  was  a  huge, 
melancholy  mistake  ;  and  yet  it  was  pressed  upon 
Christians  as  the  true  religion,  which  availed  with  God, 
and  could  alone  bring  blessing  to  men.  Hence,  as  our 
Lord  denounced  the  Pharisees  with  special  energy, — 
sometimes  with  withering  sarcasm  (Luke  xi.  47), — so, 
and  for  the  same  reasons,  does  Paul  attack  the  Judaisers- 
The  Pharisees  applied  themselves  to  turn  the  religion  of 
Israel  into  a  soul-withering  business  of  formalism  and 
pride ;  and  Paul's  opponents  strove  to  pervert  to  like 
effect  even  the  gracious  and  life-giving  gospel  of  Christ. 
To  such  he  would  give  place,  no,  not  for  an  hour. 

Two  things  may  be  suggested  here.  One  is  the 
responsibility  incurred  by  those  who  make  a  religious 
profession,  and  in  that  character  endeavour  to  exert 
religious  influence  upon  others.  Such  men  are  taking 
possession,  as  far  as  they  can,  of  what  is  highest  and 
most  sacred  in  the  soul's  capacities ;  and  if  they  mis- 
direct the  soul's  life  here,  if  consciously  or  unconsciously 
they  betray  interests  so  sacred,  if  they  successfully 
teach  men  to  take  false  coin  for  true  in  the  matter  of 
the  soul's  dealings  with  God  and  with  its  own  welfare, 
their  responsibility  is  of  the  heaviest. 

Another  point  to  notice  is  the  energy  with  which  the 
Apostle  thinks  it  right  to  denounce  these  evil  workers. 
Denunciation  is  a  line  of  things  in  which,  as  we  know  very 
well,  human  passion  is  apt  to  break  loose — the  wrath  of 
man  which  worketh  not  the  righteousness  of  God.  The 
history  of  religious  controversy   has   made    this    very 

12 


178  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

plain.  Yet  surely  we  may  say  that  zeal  for  truth  must 
sometimes  show  itself  in  an  honest  indignation  against 
the  wilfulness  and  the  blindness  of  those  who  are 
misleading  others.  It  is  not  always  well  to  be  merely 
mild  and  placable.  That  may  arise  in  some  cases  from 
no  true  charity,  but  rather  from  indifference,  or  from  an 
amiability  that  is  indolent  and  selfish.  It  is  good  to 
be  zealously  affected  in  a  good  thing.  Only,  we  have 
reason  to  take  heed  to  ourselves  and  to  our  own  spirit, 
when  we  are  moved  to  be  zealous  in  the  line  of  con- 
demning and  denouncing.  Not  all  who  do  so  have 
approved  their  right  to  do  it,  by  tokens  of  spiritual 
wisdom  and  single-hearted  sincerity  such  as  marked 
the  life  and  work  of  Paul. 

The  Judaisers  put  abroad  the  false  coin,  and  believers 
in  Christ,  whether  circumcised  or  not,  had  the  true. 
"  We  are  the  circumcision,  who  worship  by  the  Spirit 
of  God,  and  who  glory  in  Christ  Jesus,  and  who  put 
no  confidence  in  the  flesh."  Such  are  truly  Abraham's 
children  (Gal.  iii.  29).  To  them  belong  whatever  rela- 
tion to  God,  and  interest  in  God,  were  shadowed  forth 
by  circumcision  in  the  days  of  old. 

No  doubt,  the  rite  of  circumcision  was  outward ; 
and  no  doubt  it  came  to  be  connected  with  a  great 
system  of  outward  ordinances  and  outward  providences. 
Yet  circumcision,  according  to  the  Apostle,  pointed  not 
outwards,  but  inwards  (Rom.  ii.  28,  29).  Elsewhere  he 
lays  stress  on  this,  that  circumcision,  when  first  given, 
was  a  seal  of  faith.     In  the  Old  Testament  itself,  the 


iii.  i-S.]  NO   CONFIDENCE  IN   THE   FLESH.  179 


complaint  made  by  the  prophets,  speaking  for  God,  was 
that  the  people,  though  circumcised  in  flesh,  were  of 
uncircumcised  heart  and  uncircumcised  ears.  And  God 
threatens  to  punish  Israel  with  the  Gentiles — the 
circumcised  with  the  uncircumcised — because  all  the 
house  of  Israel  are  uncircumcised  in  heart. 

The  true  circumcision  then  must  be  those,  in  the 
first  place,  who  have  the  true,  the  essentially  true 
worship.  Circumcision  set  men  apart  as  worshippers 
of  the  true  God  :  hence  Israel  came  to  be  thought  of  as 
a  people  "  instantly  serving  (or  worshipping)  God  day 
and  night."  That  this  worship  must  include  more 
than  outward  service  in  order  to  be  a  success — that  it 
should  include  elements  of  high  spiritual  worth,  was 
disclosed  in  Old  Testament  revelation  with  growing 
clearness.  One  promise  on  which  it  rested  was  :  "  The 
Lord  thy  God  will  circumcise  thine  heart,  and  the 
heart  of  thy  seed,  to  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all 
thy  heart,  and  with  all  thy  soul,  that  thou  mayest  live." 
The  true  circumcision,  those  who  answer  to  the  type 
which  circumcision  was  meant  to  set,  must  be  those  who 
have  the  true  worship.  Now  that  is  the  worship  ''  by  the 
Spirit "  ;  on  which  we  shall  have  a  word  to  say  presently. 

And  again,  the  true  circumcision  must  be  those  who 
have  the  true  glorying.  Israel,  called  to  glory  in 
their  God,  were  set  apart  also  to  cherish  in  that  con- 
nection a  great  hope,  which  was  to  bless  their  line, 
and,  through  them,  the  world.  That  hope  was  fulfilled 
in    Christ.       The    true    circumcision    were    those    who 


i8o  THE  EPISTLE    TO   THE  PIIILIPPIANS. 

welcomed  the  fulfilment  of  the  promise,  who  rejoiced  in 
the  fulness  of  the  blessing,  because  they  had  eyes  to 
see  and  hearts  to  feel  its  incomparable  worth. 

And  certainly,  therefore,  as  men  who  had  discovered 
the  true  foundation  and  refuge,  they  must  renounce  and 
turn  from  the  false  trust,  they  must  put  no  confidence 
in  the  flesh.  Is  this,  however,  a  paradox?  Was  not 
circumcision  "  outward,  in  the  flesh  "  ?  Was  it  not 
found  to  be  a  congruous  part  of  a  concrete  system, 
built  up  of  ''  elements  of  this  world  "  ?  Was  not  the 
temple  a  ''  worldly  sanctuary,"  and  were  not  the  sacri- 
fices "  carnal  ordinances  "  ?  Yes  ;  and  yet  the  true 
circumcision  did  not  trust  in  circumcision.  He  who 
truly  took  the  meaning  of  that  remarkable  dispensation 
was  trained  to  say,  "  Doth  not  my  soul  wait  on  God  ? 
from  Him  cometh  my  salvation."  And  he  was  trained 
to  renounce  the  confidences  in  which  the  nations 
trusted.  Hence,  though  such  a  man  could  accept 
instruction  and  impression  from  many  an  ordinance 
and  many  a  providence,  he  was  still  led  to  place  his 
trust  higher  than  the  flesh.  And  now,  when  the  true 
light  was  come,  when  the  Kingdom  of  God  shone  out  in 
its  spiritual  principles  and  forces,  the  true  circumcision 
must  be  found  in  those  who  turned  from  that  which 
appealed  only  to  the  earthly  and  the  fleshly  mind, 
that  they  might  fasten  on  that  in  which  God  revealed 
Himself  to  contrite  and  longing  souls. 

The  Apostle  therefore   claimed  the  inheritance   and 


iii.  1-8.]  NO   CONFIDENCE  IN   THE  FLESH.  i8i 


representation  of  the  ancient  holy  people  for  spiritual 
believers,  rather  than  for  Judaising  ritualists.  But 
apart  from  questions  as  to  tlie  connection  between  suc- 
cessive covenants,  it  is  worth  our  while  to  weigh  well 
the  significance  of  those  features  of  Christian  religion 
which  are  here  emphasised. 

"We,"  he  says,  "worship  by  the  Spirit  of  God."  The 
Holy  Spirit  was  not  absent  from  the  old  economy. 
But  in  those  days  the  consciousness  and  the  faith  of 
His  working  were  dim,  and  the  understanding  of  the 
scope  of  it  was  limited.  In  the  times  of  the  New 
Testament,  on  the  contrary,  the  promise  and  the 
presence  of  the  Spirit  assume  a  primary  place.  This 
is  the  great  promise  of  the  Father  which  was  to  come 
into  manifestation  and  fulfilment  when  Christ  had 
gone  away.  This,  from  Pentecost  onwards,  was  to  be 
distinctive  of  the  character  of  Christ's  Church.  Accord- 
ing to  the  Apostle  Paul,  it  is  one  great  end  of  Christ's 
redemption,  that  we  may  receive  the  promise  of  the 
Spirit  through  faith.  So,  in  particular,  Christian  wor- 
ship is  by  the  Spirit  of  God.  Therefore  it  is  a  real  and 
most  inward  fellowship  with  God.  In  this  worship  it 
is  the  office  of  the  Holy  Spirit  to  give  us  a  sense  of  the 
reality  of  Divine  things,  especially  of  the  truths  and 
promises  of  God  ;  to  touch  our  hearts  with  their  good- 
ness, on  account  especially  of  the  Divine  love  that 
breathes  in  them  ;  to  dispose  us  to  decision,  in  the 
way  of  consent  and  surrender  to  God  as  thus  revealed. 
He  takes  the  things  of  Christ,  and  shows  them  to  us. 


1 82  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


So  he  brings  us,  in  our  worship,  to  meet  with  God, 
mind  to  mind,  heart  to  heart.  Although  all  our 
thoughts,  as  well  as  all  our  desires,  come  short,  yet,  in 
a  measure,  a  real  consent  with  God  about  His  Son  and 
about  the  blessings  of  His  Son's  gospel  comes  to  pass. 
Then  we  sing  with  the  Spirit,  when  our  songs  are 
filled  with  confidence  and  admiration,  arising  out  of  a 
sense  of  God's  glory  and  grace ;  and  we  pray  in  the 
Holy  Ghost,  when  our  supplications  express  this  loving 
and  thankful  close  with  God's  promises.  It  is  our 
calling  and  our  blessedness  to  worship  by  the  Spirit  of 
God.  Much  of  our  worship  might  fall  silent,  if  this  alone 
should  be  upheld  :  yet  this  alone  avails  and  finds  God. 
Whatever  obscures  this,  or  distracts  attention  from  it, 
whether  it  be  called  Jewish  or  Christian,  does  not  aid 
worship,  but  mars  it. 

It  is  true  that  the  presence  of  the  Spirit  of  God  is  not 
discernible  otherwise  than  by  the  fruits  of  His  working. 
And  the  difficulty  may  be  raised,  how  can  we,  in  prac- 
tice, be  secure  of  having  the  Spirit,  thereby  to  worship 
God  ?  But,  on  the  one  hand,  we  know  in  some 
degree  what  the  nature  of  the  worship  is  which  He 
sustains  ;  we  can  form  some  conception  of  the  atti- 
tude and  exercise  of  soul  towards  Christ  and  God 
which  constitutes  that  worship.  We  do  therefore 
know  something  as  to  what  we  should  seek  ;  we  are 
aware  of  the  direction  in  which  our  face  should  be 
set.  On  the  other  hand,  the  presence  of  the  Spirit 
with  us,  to  make  such  worship  real  in  our  case,  is  an 


iii.  1-8.]  NO   CONFIDENCE  IN   THE  FLESH.  183 


object  of  faith.  We  believe  in  God  for  that  gracious 
presence,  and  ask  for  it  ;  and  so  doing,  we  expect  it, 
according  to  God's  own  promise.  On  this  under- 
standing we  apply  ourselves  to  find  entrance  and 
progress  in  the  worship  which  is  by  the  Spirit. 

All  appliances  which  are  supposed  to  aid  worship, 
which  are  conceived  to  add  to  its  beauty,  pathos,  or 
sublimity,  are  tolerable  only  so  far  as  they  do  not 
tend  to  divert  us  from  the  worship  which  is  by  the 
Spirit.  Experience  shows  that  men  are  extremely 
prone  to  fall  back  from  the  simplicity  and  intentness 
of  spiritual  worship ;  and  then  they  cover  the  gap, 
which  they  cannot  fill,  by  outward  arrangements  of  an 
impressive  and  affecting  kind.  Outward  arrangements 
can  render  real  service  to  worshippers,  only  if  they 
remove  hindrances,  and  supply  conditions  under  which 
the  simplicity  and  intentness  of  the  worship  "  by  the 
Spirit "  may  go  on  undisturbed.  Very  often  they  have 
tended  exactly  in  the  contrary  direction  ;  not  the  less 
because  they  have  been  introduced,  perhaps,  with  the 
best  intentions.  And  yet  the  chief  question  of  all  is  not 
the  more  or  less,  the  this  or  that,  of  such  circumstan- 
tials ;  but  rather  what  the  heart  fixes  on  and  holds  by. 

Again,  we  "  glory  in  Christ  Jesus."  Christians  are 
rich  and  great,  because  Christ  Jesus  assumes  a  place  in 
their  mind  and  life,  such  as  makes  them  partakers  of 
all  spiritual  blessing  in  Him.  They  glory,  not  in  what 
they  are,  or  do,  or  become,  or  get,  but  in  Christ- 
Glorying    in    anything    implies    a    deep    sense    of    its 


184  THE   EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


wonderfulness  and  worth,  along  with  some  persuasion 
that  it  has  a  happy  relation  to  ourselves.     So  Christ  is 
the  power  and  wisdom  of  God,   the  revelation  of  the 
Father,  the  way  to  the  Father,  the  centre  of  blessing, 
the    secret    of    religious    restoration,    attainment,    and 
success  :  and  He    is    ours ;  and    He   sets    the  type  of 
what  we  through  Him  shall  be.     To  glory  and  triumph 
in  Christ  is  a  leading  characteristic  of  Christian  religion. 
And  so,  then,  we  '^  put  no  confidence  in  the  flesh."     If 
in  Christ,  under  the  revelation  which  centres  in  Him, 
we  have  found  the  way  to  God  and  the  liberty  to  serve 
God,   then  all  other  ways  must   be  for  us  ipso  facto 
exposed  and  condemned ;  they  are  seen  to  be  fallacious 
and  fruitless.     All  these  other  ways  are  summed  up  in 
*'  the  flesh."     For  the  flesh  is  human  nature  fallen,  with 
the  resources  which  it  wields,  drawn  from  itself  or  from 
earthly  materials  of  some  kind.     And  in  some  selection 
or  combination  of  these  resources,  the  religion  of  the 
flesh  stands.     The  renunciation  of  trust  in  such  ways 
of  establishing  a  case   before   God  is  included  in  the 
acceptance  of  Christ's  authority  and  Christ's  salvation. 
This  condemns  ahke  the  confidence  in  average  morality, 
and  that  in  accredited  ecclesiastical  surroundings.     It 
condemns  confidence  in  even  the  holiest  Christian  rites, 
as  if  they  could  transfer  us,  by  some  intrinsic  virtue, 
into  the  Kingdom  of  God,  or  could  accredit  our  stand- 
ing there.     The  same  holds  of  confidence  in  doctrines, 
and  even  of  confidence  in  sentiments.     Rites,  doctrines, 
and  sentiments  haye  their  place  of  honour,  as  lines  in 


iii.  1-8.]  NO  CONFIDENCE  IN  THE  FLESH.  185 


which  Christ  and  we  may  meet.  Otherwise  they  all 
fall  into  the  category  of  the  flesh.  Many  things  the 
flesh  can  do,  in  worship  as  in  other  departments  ;  but 
it  cannot  attain  to  the  worship  that  is  by  the  Spirit  of 
God.  Much  it  can  boast  of;  but  it  cannot  replace 
Ininianuel ;  it  cannot  fill  the  place  of  the  reconciliation 
and  the  life.  When  we  learn  what  kind  of  confidence 
is  needed  towards  God,  and  find  the  ground  of  it  in  the 
Christ  of  God,  then  we  cease  to  rely  on  the  flesh. 

At  this  point  the  Apostle  cannot  but  emphasise  his 
own  right  to  speak.  He  appeals  to  his  remarkable 
history.  He  knows  all  about  this  Judaic  religion, 
which  glories  in  the  flesh,  and  he  knows  also  the 
better  way.  The  experience  which  had  transformed 
his  life  entitled  him  to  a  hearing  ;  for,  indeed,  he,  as  no 
man  else,  had  searched  out  the  worth  of  both  the  ways 
of  it.  So  he  is  led  into  a  remarkable  testimony  regard- 
ing the  nature  and  the  working  forces  of  true  Christian 
religion.  And  this,  while  it  serves  the  purpose  of 
throwing  deserved  disgrace  on  the  poor  religion  of 
Judaising,  serves  at  the  same  time  a  higher  and  more 
durable  purpose.  It  sets  the  glor}^  of  the  life  of  faith, 
love,  and  worship,  against  the  meanness  of  all  fleshly 
life  whatever ;  and  thus  it  vividly  impresses  on  all 
hearers  and  readers  the  alternatives  with  which  we 
have  to  deal,  and  the  greatness  of  the  choice  which  we 
are  called  to  make. 

If  Paul  decries  the  Jewish  glorying  in  the  flesh,  it  is 
not  because  he  lacked  ground,  that  had  enabled  him  to 


1 86  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PIIILIPPIANS. 


cherish  it  and  might  enable  him  still  to  do  so.  "  I  also 
have  material  enough  of  fleshly  confidence  : — if  any 
other  thinks  to  have  confidence  in  the  flesh,  I  more." 
Then  comes  the  remarkable  catalogue  of  the  preroga- 
tives which  had  once  meant  so  much  for  Saul  of 
Tarsus,  filling  his  heart  with  confidence  and  exultation. 
"  Circumcised  the  eighth  day  " — for  he  was  no  proselyte, 
but  born  within  the  fold  :  "  of  the  stock  of  Israel  " — for 
neither  had  his  parents  been  proselytes  :  in  particular, 
for  he  was  one  whose  pedigree  was  ascertained  and 
notorious,  "  of  the  tribe  of  Benjamin  "  :  '^  an  Hebrew  ot 
Hebrews  " — nursed  and  trained,  that  is  to  say,  in  the 
very  speech  and  spirit  of  the  chosen  people  ;  not,  as 
some  of  them,  bred  up  in  a  foreign  tongue,  and  under 
ahen  influences  :  "  concerning  the  law,  a  Pharisee  " — 
that  is,  *'  of  the  strictest  sect  of  our  religion  "  (Acts 
xxvi.  5) ;  for,  as  a  Pharisee,  Saul  had  given  himself  wholly 
to  know  the  law,  to  keep  the  law,  to  teach  the  law.  More 
yet — "  as  to  zeal,  a  persecutor  of  the  Church";  in  this 
clause  the  heat  of  the  writer's  spirit  rises  into  pathetic 
irony  and  self-scorn  :  ''  This  appropriate  outcome  of 
carnal  Judaism,  alas,  was  not  lacking  in  me  :  /  was 
not  a  Judaiser  of  the  half-hearted  sort."  The  idea  is, 
that  those  who,  trusting  in  fleshly  Judaism,  claimed 
also  to  be  Christians,  knew  neither  their  own  spirit, 
nor  the  proper  working  of  their  own  system.  Saul  of 
Tarsus  had  been  no  such  incoherent  Jew  ;  only  too 
bloodily  had  he  proved  himself  thorough  and  consistent. 
Lastly,  as  to  ''  law  righteousness,"  the  righteousness  of 


iii.  i-S.J  NO   CONFIDENCE   IN   THE  ELESII.  1S7 

compliance  with  rules,  he  had  been  unchallengeable  ; 
not  a  Pharisaic  theorist  only,  but  a  man  who  made 
conscience  of  his  theory.  Ah  !  he  had  known  all  this  ; 
and  more,  he  had  been  forced  in  a  great  crisis  of  his 
life  to  measure  and  search  out  the  whole  worth  of  it. 

"  But  what  things  were  gain  to  me  " — the  whole  class 
of  things  that  ranked  themselves  before  my  eyes,  and 
in  my  heart,  as  making  me  rich  and  strong — **  those 
I  have  esteemed  "  (in  a  mass)  "  to  be  loss  for  Christ." 
They  ceased  to  be  valuable,  they  began  to  be  reckoned 
as  elements  of  disadvantage  and  of  loss,  in  comparison 
of  Christ.  Nor  these  things  only,  but  even  all  things — 
"Yea  doubtless,  and  I  count  all  things  but  loss  for  the 
excellency  of  the  knowledge  of  Christ  Jesus  my  Lord." 
"  All  things  "  must  include  more  than  those  old  elements 
of  fleshly  confidence  already  enumerated.  It  must 
include  everything  which  Paul  still  possessed,  or  might 
yet  attain,  that  could  be  separated  from  Christ,  weighed 
against  Him,  brought  into  competition  with  Him — all 
that  the  flesh  could  even  yet  take  hold  of,  and  turn  into 
a  ground  of  separate  confidence  and  boasting.  So  the 
phrase  might  cover  much  that  was  good  in  its  place, 
much  that  the  Apostle  was  glad  to  hold  in  Christ  and 
from  Christ,  but  which  yet  might  present  itself  to  the 
unwatchful  heart  as  material  of  independent  boasting, 
and  which,  in  that  case,  must  be  met  with  energetic  and 
resolute  rejection.  "  All  things "  may  include,  for 
instance,  many  of  those  elements  of  Christian  and 
Apostolic  eminence  which  are  enumerated  in  2  Cor.  xi. ; 


i88  THE  EPISTLE    TO    THE  PHHJPPIANS. 


for  while  he  thankfully  received  many  such  things,  and 
lovingly  prized  them  "  in  Christ  Jesus/'  yet  as  they 
might  become  occasions  to  flatter  or  seduce  even  an 
Apostle — betraying  him  into  self-confidence,  or  into  the 
assertion  of  some  separate  worth  and  glory  for  himself 
— they  must  be  rejected  and  counted  to  be  loss. 

The  difficulty  for  us  here  is  to  estimate  worthily  the 
elevation  of  that  regard  to  Christ  which  had  become 
the  inspiration  of  the  life  of  Paul. 

At  the  time  when  he  was  arrested  on  the  road  to 
Damascus,  God  revealed  His  Son  to  him  and  in  him. 
Paul  then  became  aware  of  Jesus  as  the  Messiah  of  his 
people,  against  whom  his  utmost  energies  had  bent 
themselves — against  whom  he  had  sinned  with  his 
utmost  determination.  That  discovery  came  home  to 
him  with  a  sense  of  great  darkness  and  horror ;  and, 
no  doubt,  at  the  same  time,  his  whole  previous  con- 
ceptions of  life,  and  his  judgments  of  his  own  life,  were 
subverted,  and  fell  in  ruins  around  him.  He  had  had 
his  scheme  of  life,  of  success,  of  welfare  :  it  had  seemed 
to  him  a  lofty  and  well-accredited  one  ;  and,  with  what- 
ever misgivings  he  might  occasionally  be  visited,  on  the 
whole  he  thought  of  himself  as  working  it  out  hopefully 
and  well.  Now  on  every  side  were  written  only  defeat, 
perplexity,  and  despair.  But  ere  long  the  Son  of  God 
was  revealed  in*  his  heart  (Gal.  i.  i6)  as  the  Bearer  of 
righteousness  and  life  to  sinners — as  the  embodiment 
of  Divine  reconciliation  and  Divine  hope.  In  this 
light  a  new  conception  of  the  world,  a  new  scheme  of 


iii.  1-8.]  NO   CONFIDENCE   IN   THE   FLESH.  189 

worthy  and  victorious  life,  opened  itself  to  Paul — new 
and  wonderful.     But  the  reason  of  it,  the  hopefulness 
of  it,  the  endless  worth  of  it,  lay  chiefly  here,  that  God 
in  Christ  had  come  into  his  life.     The  true  relation  of 
moral  life  to  God,  and  the  ends  of  human  life  as  judged 
by  that  standard,  were  opening  before  him  ;  but,  if  that 
had    stood  alone,    it    might    only   have  completed   the 
dismay    of  the    paralysed    and    stricken   man.      What 
made  all   new  was   the   vision   of   Christ    victoriously 
treading  the  path  in  which  we  failed  to  go,  and  of  Christ 
dying  for  the  unrighteous.     So  God   came  into   view, 
in   His  love,  redeeming,  reconciling,  adopting,    giving 
the  Holy  Spirit — and  He   came  into  view  "  in  Christ 
Jesus."     God  was  in  Christ,     The  manifold  relation  of 
the  living  God  to  His  creature  man,  began  to  be  felt 
and  verified  in  the  manifold  relation  of  Christ  the  Son 
of  God,  the  Mediator  and  Saviour,  to  the  broken  man 
who    had   defied    and    hated    Him,     Christ  henceforth 
became  the  ground,  the  meaning,  and  the  aim  of  Paul's 
life.     Life  found  its  explanation,  its  worth,  its  loving 
imperative  here.     All  things  else  that  once  had  value 
in  his  eyes  fell  away.     If  not  entirely  dismissed,  they 
were  now  to  have  only  such  place  and  use  as  Christ 
assigned  to  them,  only  such  as  could  fit  the  genius  of 
life  in  Christ.     And  all  new  prerogatives  and   attain- 
ments that  might  yet  accrue  to  Paul,  and  might  seem 
entitled  to  assume  value  in  his  eyes,  could   only  have 
the  same  subordinate  place  : — Christ  first,  whose  light 
and  love,  whose  power  to  fix  and   fill  and  attract  the 


igo  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

soul,  made  all  things  new  ;  Christ  first,  so  that  all  the 
rest  was  comparatively  nowhere ;  Christ  first,  so  that 
all  the  rest,  if  at  any  time  it  came  into  competition  with 
Him,  if  it  offered  itself  to  Paul  as  a  source  of  individual 
confidence  and  boasting,  is  recognised  as  mere  loss, 
and  in  that  character  resolutely  cast  away. 

This  had  become  the  living  and  ruHng  principle  with 
Paul ;  not  so,  indeed,  as  to  meet  with  no  opposition, 
but  so  as  to  prevail  and  bear  down  opposition.  Enthu- 
siastically accepted  and  embraced,  it  was  a  principle 
that  had  to  be  maintained  against  temptation,  against 
infirmity,  against  the  strong  tides  of  inward  habit  and 
outward  custom.  Here  lay  the  trial  of  Paul's  sincerity 
and  of  Christ's  fidelity  and  power. 

That  trial  had  run  its  course :  it  was  now  not  far 
from  its  ending.  The  opening  of  heart  and  mind  to 
Christ,  and  the  surrender  of  all  to  Him,  had  not  been 
the  matter  merely  of  one  hour  of  deep  impression  and 
high  feeling.  It  had  continued,  it  was  in  full  force  still. 
Paul's  value  for  Christ  had  borne  the  strain  of  time,  and 
change,  and  temptation.  Now  he  is  Paul  the  aged, 
and  also  a  prisoner  of  Christ  Jesus.  Has  he  abated 
from  the  force  or  cooled  from  the  confidence  of  that 
mind  of  his  concerning  the  Son  of  God  ?  Far  other- 
wise. With  a  ''  Yea  doubtless "  he  tells  us  that  he 
abides  by  his  first  conviction,  and  affirms  his  first 
decision.  Good  right  he  had  to  testify.  This  was  not 
a  matter  of  inward  feeling  only,  however  sincere  and 
strong.     He  had  been  well  proved.     He  has  suffered 


lii.  I -8.]  NO   CONFIDENCE  IN   THE  FLESH.  191 


the  loss  of  all  things  ;  he  has  seen  all  his  treasures — 
what  are  counted  for  such — swept  away  from  him  as 
the  result  of  unflinching  faith  and  service  ;  and  he 
counts   all   to   be  well   lost  for  Christ. 

This  passage  sets  before  us  the  essential  nature  of 
Christianity— the  essential  life  of  a  Christian,  as 
revealed  by  the  effect  it  has  on  his  esteem  for  other 
tilings.  Many  of  us,  one  supposes,  cannot  consider  it 
without  a  sense  of  deep  disgrace.  The  view  here  given 
awakens  many  thoughts.  Some  aspects  of  the  subject 
must  be  dwelt  upon  for  a  moment. 

Those  things  that  were  gain,  all  things  that  can  be 
gain,  such  are  the  objects  Paul  here  reckons  with.  The 
believing  mind  concerning  Christ  carries  with  it  a 
changed   mind   as  regards  all   these. 

Apparently,  in  some  deep  sense,  there  arises  for  us 
in  this  world  an  inevitable  competition  between  Christ 
on  the  one  hand  and  all  things  on  the  other.  If  we 
should  say  some  things,  we  might  be  in  danger  of 
sliding  into  a  one-sided  puritanism.  But  we  escape 
that  risk  by  saying,  emphatically,  all  things.  A  decision 
upon  this  has  to  be  reached,  it  has  to  be  maintained, 
it  is  to  be  reaffirmed  in  particulars,  in  all  particulars. 
For  we  must  remember  that  the  heart  of  Paul,  in  this 
burst  of  loyalty,  is  only  echoing  the  call  of  Christ  : 
"  He  that  loveth  father  or  mother  more  than  Me,  is 
not  worthy  of  Me."  Let  us  repeat  it,  this  applies  to 
ALL  things.  Because  a  certain  way  of  feeling  and  think- 
ing about  these  things,   and  especially  about  some  of 


192  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


them,  is  present  with  us  all,  which  asserts  itself  against 
this  principle,  therefore  Christian  life,  however  rich  and 
full,  however  gracious  and  generous  its  character  truly 
is,  must  include  a  negative  at  the  base  of  it.     ''  Let  a 
man  deny  (or  renounce)  himself,  and  take  up  his  cross." 
That  Hfe  should  be  subjected  to  this  severe  competi- 
tion  seems  hard  :  we  may  repine  at  it,  and   count  it 
needless.     We  may  ask,  "  Why  should  it  be  so  ?    Why 
might  not  Christ  take  His  place  in  our  regard — His  first, 
His  ideal,  His  incomparable  place — and,   at  the  same 
time,  all  the  other  things  take  their  place  too,  each  in 
due  order,  as  the  true   conception  of  human  life  may 
imply,   and   as  the  claims    of  loyalty    to   Christ    may 
dictate  ?     Why  should   not  each   take  its  place,  more 
prominent  or  more  subordinate,  on  a  principle  of  har- 
mony and  happy  order  ?     Why  should  life  be  subjected 
to  conflict  and  strain  ?  "    We  may  dream  of  this  ;  but  it 
will  not  be.     We  are  such  persons,  and  the  world  about 
us  is  so  related  to  us  now,  that  the  "all  things  "are  found 
continually  claiming  a  place,  and  striving  to  make  good 
for  themselves  a  place  in  our  heart  and  life,  that  will 
not  consist  with  the  regard  due  to  Christ.     They  can 
be  resisted  only  by  a  great  inward  decision,  maintained 
and  renewed  all  along  our  life,  for  Christ  and  against 
them.      The    nearest  approach  the    believer  makes    in 
this   life  to  that   happy   harmony  of  the   whole  being 
which  was  spoken  of  just  now,  is  when  his  decision  for 
Christ   is  so  thorough  and  joyful,  that  the  other  ele- 
ments— the  "all  things" — fall  into  their  place,  reduced 


iii.  1-8.]  NO  CONFIDENCE  IN   THE  FLESH.  193 


into  obedience  by  an  energy  that  breaks  resistance. 
Then  too,  in  that  place,  they  begin  to  reveal  their 
proper  nature  as  God's  gifts,  their  real  beauty  and  their 
real  worth. 

But  then,  in  the  next  place,  though  the  decision 
cannot  be  escaped,  yet,  let  us  be  assured,  there  is  in 
this  no  real  hardship.  To  be  so  called  to  this  decision 
is  the  greatest  blessedness  of  life.  There  is  that  in 
Christ  for  men,  on  account  of  which  a  man  may  gladly 
count  all  else  but  loss,  may  count  it  abundantly  well 
worth  his  while  to  make  this  choice.  Christ  as  binding 
us  to  God,  Christ  as  the  living  source  of  reconciliation 
and  sonship,  Christ  as  the  spring  of  a  continually 
recruited  power  to  love  and  serve  and  overcome, 
Christ  as  assuring  to  us  the  attainment  of  His  own 
likeness,  Christ  as  the  Revealer  of  a  love  which  is  more 
and  better  than  all  its  own  best  gifts — Christ  discloses 
to  us  a  world  of  good,  for  the  sake  of  which  it  is  well 
done  to  cast,  if  need  be,  all  else  away.  It  proves  reason- 
able to  reject  the  importunate  claim  which  other  things 
make  to  be  reckoned  indispensable.  It  proves  natural, 
according  to  a  new  nature,  to  hold  all  else  loosely,  that 
we  may  hold  this  one  interest  fast. 

Yet  this  is  not  to  be  done  or  endeavoured  by  dis- 
missing out  of  life  all  that  gives  character  and  move- 
ment to  human  existence.  Not  so  :  for  indeed  it  is 
human  life  itself,  with  its  complex  of  relations  and 
activities,  that  is  to  receive  the  new  inspiration.  The 
decision  is  to  be  made  by  accepting  the  principle  that 

13 


194  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

life,  throughout,  must  be  life  in  Christ,  life  for  Christ  ; 
and  by  setting  ourselves  to  learn  from  Him  what  that 
principle  means.  Of  the  "all  things"  many  must  con- 
tinue with  us ;  but  if  so,  they  must  continue  on  a  new 
principle  :  no  longer  as  competitors,  certainly  not  as 
allowed  competitors,  but  as  gifts  and  subjects  of 
Christ,  accepting  law  and  destination  from  Him.  Then, 
also,  they  may  continue  to  carry  with  them  many  a 
pleasant  experience  of  our  Master's  providential  good- 
ness. The  effort  to  comply  with  Paul's  example  by 
mutilating  human  life  of  some  of  its  great  elements  has 
often  been  a  sincere  and  earnest  effort.  But  it  impHes 
a  distorted,  and  eventually  a  narrowed  view  of  the 
Christian's  calling.  For,  short  of  suicide,  we  can 
never  deal  with  all  things  on  that  principle  of  simple 
amputation.  Now  the  Apostle  says  all  things:  ''I  count 
all  things  to  be  loss." 

Let  this,  however,  be  noted,  that  loyalty  requires 
something  more  than  merely  a  new  valuation  of  things 
in  our  minds,  however  sincere  that  valuation  might  be. 
It  demands  also  actual  sacrifice,  when  duty  or  when 
faithful  service  calls  for  it.  Paul's  Christianity  was 
prompt  to  lay  down,  as  circumstances  in  the  course 
of  following  Christ  might  demand,  everything,  any- 
thing, even  that  which,  in  other  circumstances,  might 
retain  its  place  in  life,  and  be  counted,  in  its  own 
place,  seemly  and  welcome.  Not  only  shall  a  man 
count  all  to  be  loss  for  Christ :  he  shall  actually,  when 
called   upon,    suffer   the    loss    of   anything    or  of  all 


iii.  1-8.]  NO   CONFIDENCE  IN   THE   FLESH.  195 


things.  No  Christian  life  is  without  its  occasions  when 
this  test  has  to  be  accepted.  Most  Christian  lives 
include  lessons  in  this  department  at  the  very  outset. 
Some  Christian  Hves  are  very  full  of  them, — full,  that  is, 
of  experiences  in  which  contented  submission  to-  priva- 
tion, and  cheerful  acceptance  of  trouble  and  danger, 
must  approve  the  sincerity  of  the  esteem  for  Christ  our 
Saviour  which  is  the  common  profession  of  us  all.  So  it 
was  with  Paul.     He  had  suffered  the  loss  of  all  things. 

It  is  because  the  "  all  things,"  in  their  infinite  variety 
of  aspect  and  influence,  tend  so  constantly  to  come  into 
competition  with  Christ,  to  our  great  hurt  and  danger, 
that  they  must  be  so  emphatically  repudiated,  and 
counted  to  be  "  loss."  They  are  loss  indeed,  when 
they  succeed  in  taking  the  place  they  claim,  for  then 
they  impoverish  our  life  of  its  true  treasure.  We  may 
suffer  this  encroachment  to  take  place  stealthily — all 
but  unconsciously.  All  the  more  fit  it  is  that  we 
should  learn  to  assert  loyalty  to  our  Lord  with  a  mag- 
nanimous vigilance.  It  becomes  us  to  set  His  worth 
and  claims  emphatically,  with  a  "  yea  doubtless," 
against  the  poor  substitutes  for  which  we  are  tempted 
silently  to  exchange  Him.  If  not,  we  are  likely  to 
come  back  to  that  sad  stage  which  has  been  already 
brought  before  us  (ch.  ii.),  the  condition  of  those 
Christians  who  "  all  seek  their  own,  not  the  things 
which  are  Jesus  Christ's." 

Let  us  own,  however,  that  men  are  trained  in  dif- 
ferent lines  of  discipline  to  the  same  great  result.     The 


196  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHIPPIANS. 


lesson  broke  into  the  life  of  Paul  with  astounding  force 
at  one  great  crisis.  Some,  on  the  contrary,  begin 
their  training  in  little  instances  of  early  life,  and  under 
influences  working  too  gently  to  be  afterwards  recalled. 
Gradually  they  grow  into  a  clearer  perception  of  the 
gifts  Christ  offers  and  of  the  claims  He  makes ;  and 
each  step  of  decision  paves  the  way  to  new  attain- 
ments. The  experience  of  all  Christians,  however 
diversified  their  training  may  be,  is  harmonised  in  the 
fidelity  of  each  to  the  light  he  has,  and  of  all  to  the 
Lord  who  calls  them  all  to  follow  Him. 


THE  KNOWLEDGE   OF  CHRIST. 


197 


'Yea  verily,  and  I  count  all  things  to  be  loss  for  the  excellency 
of  the  knowledge  of  Christ  Jesus  my  Lord :  for  whom  I  suffered 
the  loss  of  all  things,  and  do  count  them  but  dung,  that  I  may  gain 
Christ,  and  be  found  in  Him,  not  having  a  righteousness  of  mine  own, 
even  that  which  is  of  the  law,  but  that  which  is  through  faith  in 
Christ,  the  righteousness  which  is  of  [from]  God  by  [upon]  faith : 
that  I  may  know  Him,  and  the  power  of  His  resurrection,  and  the 
fellowship  of  His  sufferings,  becoming  conformed  unto  His  death  ; 
if  by  any  means  I  may  attain  unto  the  resurrection  from  the  dead." — 
Phil.  iii.  8-11  (R.V.). 


CHAPTER    XL 

THE  KNOWLEDGE  OF  CHRIST. 

MR.  ALEXANDER  KNOX,  in  a  letter  to  a  friend,* 
makes  the  following  remark  :  "  Religion  con- 
tains two  sets  of  truths,  which  I  may  venture  to 
denominate  ultimate  and  mediatory :  the  former  refer 
to  God  as  an  original  and  end  ;  the  latter  to  the  Word 
made  flesh,  the  suffering,  dying,  rising,  ruling  Saviour ; 
the  way,  the  truth,  the  life.  Now  I  conceive  these  two 
views  have  almost  ever  been  varying,  in  the  minds  even 
of  the  sincerely  pious,  with  respect  to  comparative  con- 
sequence ;  and,  while  some  have  so  regarded  the 
ultimate  as  in  some  degree  to  neglect  the  mediatory, 
others  have  so  fixed  their  view  on  the  mediatory  as 
greatly  and  hurtfuUy  to  lose  sight  of  the  ultimate." 
This  writer  refers  to  Tillotson  on  one  side,  and  Zinzen- 
dorf  on  the  other,  as  instances  of  these  extremes ;  and 
indicates  that  perhaps  his  own  leaning  might  be  a  little 
too  much  in  the  former  direction. 

It  can  hardly  be  doubted  that  there  is  something  in 

*  Remains^  iv.,  p.  156. 
iq9 


200  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


this  suggestion.  In  the  guidance  and  training  of  the 
soul  some  aim  mainly  at  right  dispositions  towards 
God  and  His  will,  without  much  dwelling  on  what 
Knox  calls  mediatory  truths ;  because  they  assume  that 
the  latter  exist  only  with  a  view  to  the  former  ;  and  if 
the  end  has  been  brought  into  view  and  is  coming  to 
be  attained,  there  is  no  special  need  of  dwelling  on  the 
means.  Others  aim  mainly  at  receiving  the  right  im- 
pressions about  Christ  dying  and  rising,  and  at  comply- 
ing with  the  way  of  salvation  as  it  is  set  forth  to  us  in 
Christ ;  because  they  are  persuaded  that  here  the  secret 
lios  of  all  deliverance  and  progress,  and  that  the  end 
cannot  otherwise  be  reached.  And  Mr.  Knox  suggests, 
with  truth  most  likely,  that  such  persons  have  often 
so  occupied  themselves  with  what  may  be  called  the 
means  of  salvation,  that  they  lose  sight  in  a  great 
degree  of  the  end  to  which  all  tends — life  in  God,  life 
in  fellowship  with  His  loving  goodness  and  His  holy 
will. 

What  application  these  views  may  have  to  divergences 
of  our  own  day  it  would  take  too  long  to  consider.  Mr. 
Knox's  remark  has  been  referred  to  here  in  order  to  throw 
light  on  the  mental  attitude  of  Paul.  Paul  will  hardly 
be  accused  of  losing  sight  of  the  ultimate  truths  ;  but 
certainly  he  delights  to  view  them  through  the  mediatory 
truths ;  and  he  strives  to  reach  the  ultimate  victory, 
through  the  most  realising  application  to  his  heart  and 
life  of  what  those  mediatory  truths  embody  and  disclose. 
Through  the  mediatory  truths  the  ultimate  ones  reveal 


iii.  8-11.]  THE  KNOWLEDGE  OF  CHRIST.  201 

themselves  to  him  with  a  wealth  and  an  intensity  other- 
wise unattainable.  And  the  eternal  life  comes  into 
experience  for  him  as  he  takes  into  his  soul  the  full 
effect  of  the  provision  which  God  has  made,  in  Christ, 
to  bestow  eternal  life  upon  him.  That  order  of  things 
which  is  mediatory  is  not  regarded  by  Paul  only  as  a 
fitting  introduction,  on  God's  part,  to  His  ultimate  pro- 
cedure ;  it  is  also  in  the  same  degree  fitted  to  become 
for  the  individual  man  the  medium  of  vision,  of  assur- 
ance, of  participation.  In  other  words,  Paul  finds  God 
and  makes  way  into  goodness  through  Christ  ;  and  not 
through  Christ  merely  as  an  embodied  ideal,  but  through 
union  to  Christ  Divine  and  human,  Christ  living,  dying, 
rising,  redeeming,  justifying,  sanctifying,  glorifying.  He 
never  pauses  in  any  of  these,  so  as  to  fail  in  looking 
onward  to  God,  the  living  God.  But  neither  does  he 
pass  on  to  that  goal  so  as  to  disregard  the  way  unto  the 
Father.  If  he  could  have  foreseen  the  method  of  those 
who  are  striving  in  our  day  to  bring  men  to  the  blessed- 
ness which  Christianity  holds  out  by  dwelling  exclusively 
on  Christian  ethics,  he  might  have  sympathised  with  their 
ethical  intensity ;  but  he  would  surely  have  wondered 
that  they  failed  to  find  in  Christianity  more  pregnant 
springs  of  motive  and  of  power.  Perhaps  he  would 
even  be  moved  to  say,  "  O  foolish  Galatians  (or  Corin- 
thians), who  hath  bewitched  you  ?  "  Not  less,  it  must 
also  be  said,  might  he  wonder  at  many  a  gospel  preacher, 
who  rehearses  the  "  way  of  salvation "  until  the 
machinery  clanks   and   groans,    unable   apparently  to 


202  THE  EPISTLE    TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


divine— unable,  at  least,  to  bring  out— that  glory  of 
God  in  it,  that  wonderful  presence  and  influence  of 
infinite  holiness,  goodness,  and  pity,  which  make  the 
gospel  the  power  of  God. 

We,  meanwhile,  shall  do  well  to  imitate  the  charity 
of  Mr.  Knox,  who  cordially  owned  the  Christian  piety 
of  those  who  might  go  too  far  either  way.  Few  of  us, 
indeed,  can  dispense  with  the  charity  that  is  tender  to 
partial  and  imperfect  views.  But  if  we  are  to  under- 
stand Paul,  we  must  find  our  way  into  some  sympathy 
with  him  here ;  not  only  as  he  is  seen  on  this  line  to 
have  attained  so  far  in  saintship,  but  as  he  is  seen  to  be 
sure  that  this  way  lay  much  more — that  on  this  line 
his  road  lay  to  the  glory  that  should  be  revealed.  He 
could  contemplate  the  practice  and  growth  of  piety  in 
many  lights  ;  yet  it  came  home  to  him  most  evidently 
as  growth  in  the  knowledge  and  in  the  appropriation  of 
Jesus  Christ. 

He  has  cast  away  for  the  sake  of  Christ  the  treasures 
so  much  valued  by  the  Jews,  and  many  a  treasure 
more.  But  what  he  would  chiefly  impress  on  the 
minds  of  those  to  whom  he  writes  is  not  so  much  the 
amount  of  what  he  has  cast  away,  but  rather  the  worth  of 
that  which  he  has  found,  and  more  and  more  is  finding. 
The  mass  of  things  set  down  for  loss  is  a  mere  stepping- 
stone  to  this  central  theme.  But  though  he  tells  us  what 
he  thought  and  felt  about  it,  most  of  us  learn  but  slowly 
how  much  it  meant  for  him.  When  we  sit  down  beside 
the  Apostle  to  learn  his  lesson,  we  become  conscious 


iii.  8-II.]  THE  KNOWLEDGE  OF  CHRIST.  203 

that  he  is  seeing  what  we  cannot  descry  ;  he  is  sensi- 
tive to  Christ  through  spiritual  senses  which  in  us 
are  torpid  and  undeveloped.  Christ  holds  him  all 
through.  It  is  faith,  and  love,  and  gratitude ;  it  is 
self-devotion,  and  obedience,  and  wonder,  and  worship  ; 
and,  through  all,  the  conviction  glows  that  Christ  is 
his,  that  in  Christ  all  things  have  changed  for  him. 
"In  Christ  we  have  redemption  through  His  blood,  the 
forgiveness  of  sin.  He  hath  made  me  accepted  in  the 
Beloved.  I  live  ;  yet  not  I,  but  Christ.  In  Christ,  old 
things  have  passed  away,  all  things  are  made  new. 
Christ  is  made  of  God  unto  us  wisdom,  righteousness, 
sanctification,  and  redemption.  Who  shall  separate  us 
from  the  love  of  Christ  ?  "  The  intense  heat  of  this 
conception  of  Christ,  it  must  once  more  be  said,  gives 
its  distinctive  character  to  the  religious  life  of  Paul. 
May  we  not  say  that  the  lamentable  distinction  of  a 
great  deal  of  current  Christianity  is  the  coldness  of 
men's  thoughts  about  their  Saviour  ?  The  views  of 
many  may  be  characterised  as  "  correct,  but  cold." 
Only  what  can  be  more  incorrect,  what  can  more 
effectually  deny  and  controvert  the  main  things  to  be 
asserted,  than  coldness  towards  our  Saviour,  and  cold 
thoughts  of  His  benefits  ?  This  we  should  hold  to  be 
unpardonable.  We  never  should  forgive  it  to  ourselves. 
"  For  the  excellency  of  the  knowledge  of  Christ  Jesus." 
Christ  had  come  into  the  life  of  Paul  as  a  wonderful 
knowledge.  Becoming  thus  known  to  him,  He  had  trans- 
formed the  world  in  which  Paul  lived,  and  had  made  him 


204  THE  EPISTLE  TO   THE  PHHJPPIANS. 

conscious  of  a  new  order  of  existence,  so  that  old  things 
passed  away  and  all  became  new.  The  phrase  employed 
combines  two  ideas.  In  the  first  place,  Paul  felt  Christ 
appeahng  to  him  as  to  a  thinking,  knowing  nature. 
Various  influences  were  reaching  him  from  Christ  which 
bore  on  heart,  will,  conscience :  but  they  all  came  pri- 
marily as  a  revelation  ;  they  came  as  light.  '*  God,  who 
commanded  the  light  to  shine  out  of  darkness,  hath 
shined  in  our  hearts,  to  give  the  light  of  the  knowledge 
of  the  glory  of  God  in  the  face  of  Christ  Jesus."  In 
the  next  place,  this  discovery  came  with  a  certain 
assuredness.  It  was  felt  to  be  not  a  dream,  not  a  fair 
imagination  only,  not  a  speculation,  but  a  knowledge. 
Here  Paul  felt  himself  face  to  face  with  the  real — 
indeed,  with  fundamental  reality.  In  this  character, 
as  luminous  knowledge,  the  revelation  of  Christ  chal- 
lenged his  decision,  it  demanded  his  appreciation  and 
adherence.  For  since  Christ  claims  so  fundamental  a 
place  in  the  moral  world,  since  He  claims  so  intimate 
and  fruitful  a  relation  to  the  whole  state  and  prospects 
of  the  believing  man,  acquaintance  with  Him  (at  least, 
if  it  be  acquaintance  in  Paul's  style)  cannot  pause  at 
the  stage  of  contemplation :  it  passes  into  appropria- 
tion and  surrender.  Christ  is  known  as  dealing  with 
us,  and  must  be  dealt  with  by  us.  So  this  knowledge 
becomes,  at  the  same  time,  experience. 

Hence,  while  in  ver.  8  the  Apostle  speaks  of  himself 
as  encountering  all  earthly  loss  that  he  may  know 
Christ,  in  ver.  9  it  is  that  he  may  gain  Christ  and  may 


iii.  8-11.]  THE   KNOWLEDGE   OF  CHRIST.  205 


be  found  in  IIi)u.  Christ  so  came  into  the  field  of 
his  knowledge  as  to  become  the  treasure  of  his  life, 
replacing  those  things  which  heretofore  had  been  gain, 
and  which  now  figured  as  loss.  When  Paul  turned 
from  all  else  to  know  Christ,  he  turned,  at  the  same 
time,  to  have  Christ,  "gaining  Him," and  to  be  Christ's, 
"  found  in  Him." 

Christ,  in  fact,  comes  to  us  with  commandments, 
"  words  "  (John  xiv.  23),  which  are  to  be  kept  and  done. 
He  comes  to  us,  also,  with  promises,  the  fulfilment  of 
which,  in  our  own  case,  is  a  most  practical  business. 
Some  of  these  promises  concern  the  world  to  come;  but 
others  apply  to  the  present  ;  and  these,  which  lie  next  us, 
either  are  neglected,  or  are  embraced  and  put  to  proof, 
every  day  of  our  lives.  Besides  all  this,  Christ  comes  to 
us  to  fix  and  fill  our  minds,  and  to  endear  Himself  to  us, 
in  virtue  simply  of  what  He  is.  So  viewed.  He  is  to  be 
owned  as  our  best  Friend,  and  indeed  henceforth,  with 
reverence  be  it  said,  by  far  our  nearest  Relation.  This 
is  to  be,  or  else  it  is  not  to  be.  Each  day  asks  the 
question,  Which  ?  Paul's  Christianity  was  the  answer 
to  that  question.  How  his  answer  rings  in  all  our 
ears  !     Our  Christianity  also  is  making  its  reply. 

Both  as  to  knowledge  and  as  to  experience  the  type 
was  fixed  from  the  first :  there  could  be  no  doubt  about 
either.  But  both  were  to  deepen  and  widen  as  life 
went  on.  Christ  was  apprehended  at  first  as  a  wonder- 
ful Whole  of  good ;  but  so  that  indefinite  fields  of 
progress  were  continually  to   open   up.      In    the   very 


2o6  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


first  days  a  knowledge  dawned,  for  the  sake  of  which 
all  else  was  counted  loss  ;  3^et  a  world  of  truths 
remained  to  know,  as  well  as  of  good  to  experience,  for 
the  sake  of  which  also  all  else  should  continue  to  be 
counted  but  loss.  This,  in  fact,  is  only  one  way  of  saying 
that  Christ  and  His  salvation  were  realities,  divinely  full 
and  worthy.  Being  real,  the  full  acquaintance  with  all 
they  mean  for  men  can  only  arise  in  a  historical  way. 
Paul  therefore  emphasises  this,  that  real  Christianity, 
the  right  kind  of  Christianity,  just  because  it  has  found 
a  treasure,  is  set  on  going  on  to  find  that  same 
treasure  still  further  and  still  more  (comp.  ch.  i.  9).  If 
the  treasure  is  real  and  the  man  is  in  earnest,  that  will 
be  so.  Such  had  been  the  course  of  his  own  Christian 
life  from  the  first.  Now,  though  many  years  have 
disciplined  him,  though  changing  experiences  have 
given  him  new  points  of  view,  still,  no  less  than  at  the 
first,  his  rejoicing  in  the  present  goes  hand  in  hand 
with  reaching  onward  to  the  future.  The  one,  in  fact, 
is  the  reason  of  the  other.  Both  are  rational,  or 
neither.  He  has  counted  all  to  be  loss  for  the  ex- 
cellency of  the  knowledge  which  has  broken  upon  his 
soul  :  and  still  he  presses  on,  that  he  may  know ;  for 
the  same  strong  attraction  continues  and  grows. 

Before  passing  to  details,  something  more  should 
perhaps  be  said  of  this  magnificent  generality,  "  the 
knowledge  of  Christ." 

Christ  is  first  of  all  known  historically  ;  so  He  is 
presented  to  us  in  the  Gospels.     His  story  is  part  of 


iii.  8-II.]  THE  KNOWLEDGE   OE  CHRIST.  207 


the  history  of  our  race.      I  Ic  passes  through  youth  to 
manhood.     We  see  Ilim  living,  acting,  enduring;  and 
we  hear  Him  teaching — wonderful  words  proceed  from 
His  mouth.     We  contemplate  Him  in  His  humiliation, 
under  the  limits  to  which  He  submitted  that   He  might 
share  our  state  and  bear  our  burdens.     In  the  path- 
ways of  that  Jewish  life  He  discloses  a  perfect  good- 
ness and  a   perfect  dignity.      We  see  especially  that 
He  cherishes  a  purpose  of  goodwill  to  men  which  He 
bears  to  them  from  the  Father.     It  overflows  in  all  His 
words  and  works,  and  in  the  prosecution  of  it  He  moves 
on  to  lay  down  His  life  for  us.     This  is  the  beginning 
of  the  knowledge  of  the  Only  Begotten  of  the  Father, 
full  of  grace  and  truth.     Much  may  as  yet  be  unde- 
fined ;  many  questions  may  crowd  on  us  that  receive  as 
yet  no  precise  answer  ;  nay,  much  may  seem  to  us  as 
yet  to  be  strangely  entangled  in  the  particulars  of  an 
individual  and    of   a    provincial    existence.       But    this 
presentation  of  Christ  can  never  be  dispensed  with  or 
superseded  ;  and,  for  its  essential  purpose,  it  never  can 
be  surpassed.     For  this  is  the  Life.     "  The  Life  was 
manifested,  and  we  have  seen  it,  and  show  unto  you 
that  Eternal  Life,  which  was  with  the  Father,  and  was 
manifested  unto  us." 

This  vision,  which  the  Gospels  set  before  us,  was 
also  before  the  mind  of  Paul.  And  words  of  our  Lord, 
delivered  in  His  earthly  ministry,  and  preserved  by 
those  who  heard  Him,  were  treasured  by  the  Apostle 
of  the  Gentiles,  and  reproduced   to  guide  the  Churches 


2o8  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHJPPIANS. 

as  need  required.     Yet  there  is  a  sense  in  which  we 
may  say  that  it  is  not  exactly  the  Christ  of  the  Gospels 
who  comes   before   us   in   the   Pauline  writings.     The 
Christ  of  Paul  is  the  Lord  who  met  him  by  the  way. 
It  is  Christ  dead,  risen,    and  ascended  ;    it  is   Christ 
with   the  reason   and  the  result  of  His  finished  work 
made  plain,  and  with  the  relation  unveiled  which  He 
sustains  to  men  who  live  b}^  Him  ;  it  is  Christ  with 
the  significance  of  His  wonderful  history  for  believers 
shining   out    from    Him  —  Christ    vestitus    Evangelio. 
Now   He  has  gone  up  above  all  worlds.     No   longer 
is  He  hedged  about  by  necessities  of  mortal  life  ;  no 
longer  tied  by  earthly  bonds  to  some  places  and  some 
men   and  one   nation.       He   is   glorified ;    all    fulness 
dwells  in  Him  ;  all  God's  purposes  are  seen  to  centre 
in  Him.     And  then,  by  His  death   and   resurrection, 
the  tie  between  Him  and  His  people  is  unveiled   to 
faith,  as  it  could  not  be  before.    They  are  one  with  Him 
— in   Him  redeemed,   endowed,   triumphant,   glorified. 
Every  Christian  privilege  and  attainment,  every  grace, 
every    virtue    and    good    gift,    takes    on    a    celestial 
character,   as  it  is  seen  to  be  an  element  in  our  fel- 
lowship with  Christ.     The  state  of  Christians  is  seen 
reflected  in  their  Head.     And,  in  turn,  Christ  is  seen, 
as  it  were,  through  the  medium  of  the  relation  which 
He  sustains  to  them,  and  of  the  wealth  of  good  arising 
to  them  by  it.     It  is  Christ  as  He  is  to  His  people, 
Christ  as  He  is  set  in  the  centre  of  the  world  of  good 
that  radiates  to  them  all,  whom  Paul  wonders  at  and 


iii.  8-II.]  THE   KNOWLEDGE   OF  CHRIST.  209 

worships.  And  he  finds  all  this  to  be  rooted  in  our 
Lord's  death  upon  the  cross,  which  was  the  crisis  of 
the  whole  redemption.  All  that  follows  took  character 
and  efficacy  from  that  death. 

A  special  insight  into  all  this  was  included  in  the 
wisdom  given  to  Paul.  And  yet  this  view  of  things 
does  not  turn  out  to  be  something  diverse  or  alien 
from  what  the  Gospels  set  before  us.  Rather  it  is 
the  gospel  story  revealing  its  native  significance  and 
virtue  along  many  lines  which  were  not  so  distinct 
before. 

But  now  all  this,  in  turn,  leads  us  to  the  third  aspect 
of  the  case.  What  Christ  is  and  what  He  does  may 
be  described  ;  but  there  is  a  knowledge  of  it  which  is 
imparted  practically,  in  the  progressive  history  of  the 
believer.  According  to  the  Christian  teaching,  we 
enter,  as  Christians,  on  a  new  relation  ;  and  in  that 
relation  a  certain  blessed  well-being  is  appointed  to 
us.  This  well-being  is  itself  an  unfolding  or  disclosure 
of  Christ.  Now  this  well-being  comes  home  to  us 
and  is  verified  in  the  course  of  a  progressive  human 
experience.  Life  must  become  our  school  to  teach  us 
what  it  all  means.  Life  sets  us  at  the  point  of  view 
now  for  one  lesson,  now  for  another.  Life  moves  and 
changes,  and  briqgs  its  experiences;  its  problems,  its 
conflicts,  its  anxieties,  its  fears,  its  temptations ;  its 
need  of  pity,  pardon,  strengthening ;  its  experience  of 
weakness,  defeat,  and  disgrace ;  its  opportunities  of 
service,    self-denial,    fidelity,    victory.       For    all    these 

14 


2IO  THE  EPISTLE    TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

occasions  Christ  has  a  meaning  and  a  virtue,  which, 
in  those  occasions,  is  to  become  personal  to  ourselves. 
This  makes  knowledge  indeed.  This  becomes  the  vivid 
commentary  upon  the  historical  and  the  doctrinal  in- 
struction. Life,  taken  in  Christ^ s  way,  along  with  prayer 
and  thought,  manifests  Christ's  meaning,  and  makes  it 
real  to  us,  as  nothing  else  can.  It  furnishes  the  step- 
ping-stones for  passing  onward,  in  the  knowledge  of 
Christ. 

This  also  was  Paul's  condition,  though  he  was  an 
inspired  man.  He  too  was  fain  to  improve  his  know- 
ledge in  this  school.  And  when  we  take  all  three 
aspects  together,  we  shall  see  how  truly,  for  Paul  and 
for  us,  the  knowledge  of  Christ  is,  on  the  one  hand,  so 
excellent  from  the  first,  that  it  justifies  the  great  de- 
cision to  which  it  calls  us  ;  and,  on  the  other  hand, 
how  it  creates  a  longing  for  further  insight  and  fresh 
attainment.  The  latter  we  see  in  the  Apostle  as 
plainly  as  the  former.  From  the  first,  he  knew  in 
whom  he  believed,  and  was  persuaded  that  for  His 
sake  all  else  was  to  be  resigned.  Yet  to  the  end  he 
felt  the  unsatisfied  desire  to  know  more,  to  gain  more  ; 
and  his  heart,  if  we  may  apply  here  the  Psalmist's 
words,  was  breaking  for  this  longing  which  it  had. 

It  was  remarked  above  that  the  "excellency  of  the 
knowledge  of  Christ"  in  ver.  8  corresponds  in  the 
Apostle's  thought  to  the  ''  gaining  "  of  Christ  and  being 
'^ found  in  Him"  of  ver.  9;  and  this  maybe  the  best  place 
to  say  a  word  on  these  two  phrases.     To  gain  Christ, 


iii.  8-11.]  THE  KNOWLEDGE   OF  CHRIST.  211 

points  to  a   receiving  Christ    as    one's    own  ;  and  the 
Apostle  uses  the  phrase  so  as  to  imply  that  this  finding 
of  Christ,  as  One  who  is  gained  or  won,  was  still  going 
on  ;  it  was  progressive.     Clearly  also  the  alternative  is 
implied,  that  what  is  not  gained  is  lost.     The  question 
in  the  Apostle's  life,  about  which  he  was  so  decided, 
was  about  no  less  than  losing  or  gaining  Christ.     The 
phrase  "  be  found  "  points  to  the  verification  of  Paul's 
relation  to  Christ  in  his  history  and  in  its  results.     That 
relation  is  contemplated  as  something  that  proves  true. 
It  turns  out  to  be  so.     We  shall  best  understand  the 
phrase   as  referring,   not   to   some  one   future  date  at 
which  he  should  be  so  found,  but  rather  to  present  and 
future  alike.       As  men,  or  angels,  or  God,   or  Christ 
might  view  him,  or  as  he  might  take  account  of  his  own 
state,  this  was   what    he  would  have  found  in  regard 
to  himself.     Every  way  he  would  be  found  in  Christ. 
The  form  of  expression,  however,  is  specially  appro- 
priate here,   because   it  fits   so  well   into   the   doctrine 
of  righteousness  through  Christ,  which  the  Apostle  is 
about  to  emphasise.     A  similar  remark  applies  to  the 
expression  "  in  Christ "  so  frequently  occurring  in  the 
Pauline  writings.     This  is  usually  explained  by  saying 
that  the  Apostle  sets  before  us  Christ  as  the  sphere  of 
his   spiritual  being — in   whom   he  lived   and   moved — 
never  out  of  relation  to  Him,  and  not  so  related  to  any 
other.     Such  explanations  are  true  and  good  :  only  we 
may  say  that  the  pregnant  strength  of  the  expression 
seems  to  be  weakened  even  by  the  best  explanations. 


212  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPP/ANS. 

The  relation  in  view  is  too  wonderful  ever  to  be 
adequately  described.  The  union  between  Christ  and 
His  Church,  between  Christ  and  the  believing  man,  is 
a  mystery;  and,  like  all  objects  of  faith,  it  is  dimly 
apprehended  by  us  for  the  present.  But  the  certainty 
of  it,  and  its  wonderfulness,  we  should  never  allow 
ourselves  to  overlook.  Christ  is  able  to  bring  men  into 
fellowship  with  Himself,  to  assume  responsibility  for 
them,  to  represent  their  interests  and  to  care  for  their 
good;  and  men  may  receive  Christ  into  their  lives ;  with 
a  completeness  on  both  sides  which  no  explanations  can 
adequately  represent.  The  identification  with  Christ 
which  the  phrase  suggests  naturally  fits  what  follows. 

Now  the  Apostle  goes  more  into  detail.  He  tells  us 
what  were  for  him  the  main  articles  of  this  good  state 
of  being  ''  found  in  Christ."  He  indicates,  with  a 
certain  eager  gratitude,  the  main  fines  along  which  the 
benefits  of  that  state  had  come  into  experience,  and 
along  which  he  was  pressing  on  to  know  the  fulness  of 
Christ.  First,  in  Christ  he  has  and  shall  have  not  his 
own  righteousness,  which  is  that  of  the  law,  but  that 
which  is  through  the  faith  of  Christ,  the  righteousness 
which  is  of  God  by  faith.  Then,  secondly,  he  has  in 
hand  a  practical  knowledge  of  Christ,  culminating  in  the 
complete  deliverance  of  the  resurrection.  It  includes 
two  aspects  or  elements  :  Christ  known  in  the  power 
of  His  resurrection,  and  Christ  known  in  the  fellowship 
of  His  sufferings. 

The  first  thing  then  which  rises  distinctly  into  view 


iii.  8-II.]  THE  KNOWLEDGE   OF  CHRIST.  213 


in  connection  with  being  found  in  Christ  is  the  posses- 
sion of  the  new  righteousness.  We  have  seen  already 
that  v^ahie  for  righteousness  such  as  is  of  law,  and  hope 
of  achieving  it,  had  been  associated  with  Paul's  old 
days  of  Jewish  zeal.  He  then  stood  on  the  law,  and 
gloried  in  the  law.  But  that  had  passed  away  when 
he  learned  to  count  all  things  loss  for  the  excellency 
of  the  knowledge  of  Christ.  Kver  after,  the  contrast 
between  the  two  ways  of  seeking  "  righteousness " 
continued  to  be  fundamental  in  Paul's  Christian 
thinking. 

The  law  here  in  view  was  the  whole  revealed  will 
of  God  touching  man's  behaviour,  coming  as  a  will  of 
authority,  requiring  obedience.  The  discussion  in  the 
earlier  chapters  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans  makes  this 
plain.  And  Paul's  way  of  keeping  the  law,  in  those  old 
days,  though  it  was  necessarily  too  external,  had  not 
been  so  merely  external  as  is  sometimes  supposed.  His 
obedience  had  been  zealous  and  resolute,  with  as  much 
heart  and  meaning  as  he  could  put  into  it.  But  law- 
keeping  for  righteousness  had  been  the  principle  of  it. 
The  Jew  was  placed  under  a  law  ;  obedience  to  that  law 
should  be  his  pathwny  to  a  destiny  of  incomparable 
privilege  and  gladness.  That  was  the  theory.  So 
believing,  Paul  had  given  himself  with  zeal  to  the  work, 
"  living  in  all  good  conscience  before  God."  A  great 
change  had  now  befallen  him  ;  but  that  could  not 
imply  on  his  part  a  renunciation  of  God's  law.  The 
law,  better  understood  indeed,  and  far  more  inwardly 


214  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


apprehended,  still  retained  for  Paul  its  great  outlines, 
and  was  reverenced  as  Divine.  It  was  holy  and  just 
and  good.  It  was  felt  still  to  shed  its  steadfast  light 
on  human  duty,  awakening  and  illuminating  the  con- 
science ;  and  therefore  it  revealed  most  authentically 
the  moral  situation,  with  its  elements  of  failure,  and 
danger,  and  need.  The  law  stood  fast.  But  the 
scheme  of  life  which  stood  in  keeping  the  law  for 
righteousness  had  passed  away  for  Paul,  vanishing  in 
the  light  of  a  new  and  better  day. 

Here,  however,  we  must  ask  what  the  Apostle  means 
when  he  speaks  of  the  righteousness  which  is  by  the 
faith  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  righteousness  which  is  of 
God  unto  or  upon  faith.  Great  disputes  have  arisen 
over  this  question.  We  must  endeavour  to  find  the 
Apostle's  main  meaning,  without  involving  ourselves 
too  much  in  the  mazes  of  technical  debate. 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  FAITH. 


215 


"Not  having  a  righteousness  of  mine  own,  even  that  which  is  of 
the  law,  but  that  which  is  through  faith  in  Christ,  the  righteousness 
which  is  of  [from]  God  by  [upon]  faith." — Phil.  iii.  9  (R.V.). 


ai6 


CHAPTER   XII. 

THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  FAITH. 

RIGHTEOUSNESS  is  a  term  which  is  applied  in 
different  ways.  Often  it  denotes  excellence  of 
personal  character.  So  used,  it  suggests  the  idea  of  a 
life  whose  manifestations  agree  with  the  standard  by 
which  lives  are  tried.  Sometimes  it  denotes  rectitude 
or  justice,  as  distinguished  from  benevolence.  Some- 
times a  claim  to  be  approved,  or  judicially  vindicated, 
is  more  immediately  in  view  when  righteousness  is 
asserted.  Paul  himself  freely  uses  the  word  in  different 
applications,  the  sense,  in  each  passage,  being  deter- 
mined by  the  context.  Here  we  have  the  righteous- 
ness of  faith,  as  distinguished  from  the  righteousness 
of  works,  or  righteousness  by  the  law.  The  passage 
belongs  to  a  large  class  in  which  righteousness  is 
spoken  of  as  accruing,  through  Christ,  to  those  who  are 
unrighteous,  or  whose  own  righteousness  has  proved 
unreliable.  Let  us  try  to  fix  the  thought  which  the 
Apostle  designed  to  inculcate  in  such  passages.* 

*  The  statement  which  follows  in  the  next  six  paragraphs  is 
partly  based  on  Pfleiderer,  Poulhiismus,  p.  172  fol.  He  will  perhaps 
be  regarded  as  a  tolerably  impartial  reporter  on  this  point. 

a?7 


2i8  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

The  Apostle,  then,  conceives  of  the  righteousness, 
of  which  he  has  so  much  to  say,  as  God's  :  it  is  the 
''righteousness  of  God"  (Rom.  i.  17,  iii.  22,  x.  3).  Yet 
it  is  not  God's  in  the  sense  of  being  an  attribute  of  His 
own  Divine  nature  :  for  (in  the  passage  before  us)  it  is 
called  "the  righteousness /row  God";  it  arises  for  us 
by  our  faith  in  Jesus  Christ;  and  so  (2  Cor.  v.  21) 
"we  are  made  the  righteousness  of  God  in  Christ." 
It  is,  therefore,  something  that  is  from  God  to  us  be- 
lieving, a  "  gift  of  righteousness  "  (Rom.  v.  17).  At  the 
same  time  it  is  not,  on  the  other  hand,  an  attribute 
or  quality  of  the  human  mind,  whether  natural  or  im- 
parted;  for  it  is  something  '' revealed "  (Rom.  i.  17). 
Also,  it  is  opposed  to  the  wrath  of  God.  Now,  that 
wrath  is  indeed  an  element  of  our  state  as  sinners,  but 
not  a  feature  of  our  character.  Further,  it  could  not  be 
said  of  any  internal  character  of  our  own,  that  we  are 
to  be  "  obedient,"  or  are  to  "  submit "  to  it  (Rom.  x.  3). 

In  the  latter  part  of  Romans  v.  we  have  set  before  us 
two  counter  conceptions  :  the  one  of  sin  and  condemna- 
tion, deriving  from  Adam,  antecedent  to  the  personal 
action  and  offence  of  those  who  descend  from  him  ;  the 
other  of  free  gift  unto  justification,  following  from  the 
righteousness  or  obedience  of  Christ,  this  being  a  gift  of 
grace  abounding  unto  many.  In  either  case  the  Apostle 
sees  arising  from  one  a  relation  which  pertains  to 
many,  and  which  brings  forth  its  results  to  them  :  on 
the  one  hand,  sin  and  death  ;  on  the  other,  righteousness 
and  life.     In   both   cases  a  common  relation  is  recog- 


iii.  9.]  THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS   OF  FAITH.  219 


nised,  under  which  individuals  are  found  existing  ;  and 
in  either  case  it  traces  up  to  the  one — to  Adam  or  to 
Christ  Whatever  difficulties  may  be  felt  to  attach 
to  this  passage,  the  Apostle's  doctrine  of  the  righteous- 
ness of  faith  must  be  understood  so  as  to  agree  with 
the  way  of  thinking  which  the  passage  expresses. 

It  appears,  then,  that  the  righteousness  which  is 
from  God,  unto  or  upon  faith,  expresses  a  relation 
between  God  and  believers  that  is  the  proper  basis  for 
fellowship  with  God,  confiding  on  their  part,  communi- 
cative of  the  best  blessings  on  His.  It  is  analogous 
to  the  relation  conceived  to  arise  when  a  perfectly 
righteous  man  is  approved  and  set  apart  to  weal ;  and 
like  that  it  stands  in  contrast  with  the  relation  due  to 
sin  as  it  incurs  wrath.  It  follows  that  this  righteous- 
ness, if  it  exists  or  becomes  available  for  those  who 
have  sinned,  includes  the  forgiveness  of  sins.  But  it 
includes  more  than  forgiveness,  in  so  far  as  it  is  not 
merely  negative.  It  is  the  concession  to  us  of  a  stand- 
ing which  is  a  positive  basis  for  experiences,  pointing 
towards  eternal  life,  and  rising  into  it. 

This  relation  to  Himself  God  has  founded  for  us 
sinful  men  in  Christ,  and  specially  in  His  atonement. 
It  is  part  of  what  is  divinely  held  out  to  us,  as  life  or 
well-being  in  Christ.  When  we  do  awaken  to  it,  our 
whole  religious  attitude  towards  God  takes  character 
from  it,  and  is  to  be  ordered  accordingly.  This  way  of 
being  related  to  God  is  called  God's  righteousness,  or 
righteousness  "from  God,"  because  it  is  not  set  up  by 


220  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHHTPPIANS. 


US,  but  by  God's  grace,  through  the  redeeming  work  of 
Christ  ("being  justified  freely  by  His  grace,  through 
the  redemption  that  is  in  Christ  Jesus  " — Rom.  iii.  24). 
On  the  other  hand,  it  is  righteousness  ''of  faith,"  or 
"  through  faith  of  Christ,"  because  faith  subjects  itself  to 
the  order  of  grace,  revealed  and  made  effectual  in  Christ, 
and  therein  finds  the  reconciliation.  For  the  believing 
man  the  relation  becomes  effectual  and  operative.  He 
is  "accepted  in  the  Beloved."  He  is  "constituted 
righteous"  (Rom.  v.  19),  and  his  intercourse  with  his 
Heavenly  Father  regulates  itself  accordingly,  he  being 
justified  "  from — or  upon — his  faith."  The  harmony 
with  God  on  which  he  has  entered  becomes,  in  some 
degree,  matter  of  consciousness  for  himself  (Rom.  v.  i). 
With  this  connection  of  things  in  view,  the  Apostle 
teaches  that  righteousness  is  imputed,  or  reckoned,  to 
him  who  believes  in  Jesus  (Rom.  iv.  24). 

Whatever  opinion  we  may  choose  to  entertain  of  this 
scheme,  it  ought  not  to  be  disputed  that  this,  in  general, 
is  Paul's  conception  of  the  matter. 

However,  let  us  emphatically  note  that  it  is  as  "  in 
Christ,"  "found  in  Him,"  the  Apostle  possesses  this 
form  of  well-being.  If  there  be  such  a  thing  as  a  real 
union  between  the  Saviour  and  Paul,  then  in  the 
Saviour  and  with  the  Saviour  Paul  is  thus  righteous. 
The  faith  to  which  this  righteousness  arises  is  faith 
that  unites  to  Christ,  and  not  any  other  kind  of  faith. 
And  so,  if  it  be  possible  for  Paul  to  fall  from  Christ, 
then  also  he  must  fall  from  the  righteousness  of  faith. 


iii.  9.J  THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  FAITH.  221 

In  Christ  a  relation  to  God  appears,  made  good,  main- 
tained, and  verified,  in  which  He  gathers  to  Himself 
and  comprehends  all  true  believers :  "for  which  cause 
He  is  not  ashamed  to  call  them  brethren."  Hence  also 
this  Christian  benefit,  though  it  is  distinguishable,  is 
not  separated  radically  from  the  other  benefits.  It  is 
not  possible  to  take  the  one  and  leave  the  rest ;  for 
Christ  is  not  divided.  But  there  is  an  order  in  His 
gifts ;  and,  for  Paul,  this  gift  is  primary.  God  is  ours 
in  Christ ;  therefore  religion,  true  religion,  may  begin 
and  go  on. 

It  is  of  weight  with  Paul  that  this  righteousness  of 
faith,  arising  for  him  who  is  ''found"  in  Christ,  is 
founded  for  us  in  the  atonement.  That  is  to  say,  the 
new  relation  is  not  represented  as  a  relation  created  for 
us  by  a  mere  Divine  fiat  that  it  shall  be  so.  It  is 
represented  as  arising  for  sinful  men  out  of  the  re- 
demption of  Christ;  which  redemption  is  represented 
as  in  its  own  nature  fitted  to  fructify  into  this  result, 
as  well  as  into  other  fruits  which  are  due  to  it. 
Christ's  atonement  is  the  way  which  grace  has  taken 
to  bring  in  the  righteousness  of  faith.  In  particular, 
we  are  made  righteous  (in  this  sense)  through  Christ, 
in  a  manner  corresponding  to  that  in  which  He  was 
made  sin  for  us  (2  Cor.  v.  21).  Hence  the  blood,  the 
sacrifice,  the  obedience  of  Christ  are  referred  to  on  all 
occasions,  in  connection  with  the  righteousness  of  faith, 
as  explicative  causes  to  which  this  is  to  be  traced. 
The  relation  is  first  of  all  a  relation  completely  grounded 


222  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPFIANS. 

and  made  good  in  Christ ;  and  then  we  are  participant 
in  it  with  Him,  in  virtue  of  our  faith  in  Him. 

Clearly  the  Apostle  thinks  of  this  righteousness  of 
faith  as  something  very  wonderful.  It  is  for  him 
fundamental.  It  is  the  first  article  in  which  he  cele- 
brates the  worth  of  the  knowledge  of  Christ ;  no  doubt, 
because  he  felt  it  transforming  his  whole  moral  and 
spiritual  experience ;  and,  in  particular,  because  it  con- 
trasted so  vividly  with  the  nugatory  righteousness  of 
earlier  days. 

In  earlier  days  Paul  sought  righteousness — an   ap- 
proved and  accepted  standing  with  God — by  the  works 
of  the  law.     That  project  failed  when  the  great  dis- 
covery on  the  road  to  Damascus  showed  him  to  himself 
as  all  astray ;  in  particular,  when  the  law  itself,  coming 
home  to  him  in  the    fulness  of  its  meaning,  both   re- 
vealed to  him  the  beggarliness  of  his  own  performance, 
and,   at   the  same  time,  stung   into    appalling   activity 
ungodly   elements   within  him.     Then  he  saw  before 
him  the  law  rising  from  its  deep  foundations  in  eternal 
strength  and   majesty,  imperative,  unalterable,  inexor- 
able ;  and  over  against  it  his  own  works  lay  withered 
and   unclean.      But    another    vision    came.      He    saw 
the  Son  of  God  in  His  life,   death,   and   resurrection. 
Mere  love  and  pity  were  the  inspiration  of  His  coming : 
obedience  and  sacrifice  were  the  form  of  it.     So  in  that 
great  vision  one  element  or  aspect  that  rose  into  view 
was  righteousness, — righteousness  grounded   as    deep 
as  the  law  itself,  as  magnificent  in  its  great  prqpor- 


iii.  9. 1  THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS   OF  FAITH.  223 


tions,  as  little  subject  to  change  or  decay,  radiant  with 
surpassing  glory.  As  he  saw,  and  bowed,  and  trusted, 
he  became  conscious  of  a  new  access  and  nearness  to 
God  Himself;  he  passed  into  the  fellowship  of  God's 
dear  Son  ;  he  found  acceptance  in  the  Beloved.  Here 
was  the  answer  to  that  woful  problem  of  the  law : 
righteousness  in  Christ  for  a  world  of  sinners,  coming 
to  them  as  a  free  gift  to  faith.  Here  was  the  strong 
foundation  on  which  faith  found  itself  set  to  learn  its 
lessons,  and  perform  its  service,  and  fight  its  battles. 
In  Christ  he  received  the  reconciliation — merciful,  and 
also  righteous.  As  Paul  thought  of  the  ground  on 
which  he  once  had  stood,  and  of  the  standing  granted 
to  him  now,  "in  Him," — it  was  with  a  *'yea  doubtless" 
he  declared  that  he  counted  all  to  be  loss  for  the  gain 
of  Christ,  in  whom  he  was  found,  not  having  his  own 
righteousness,  which  was  of  the  law,  but  that  which  is 
by  the  faith  of  Christ. 

Righteousness  of  faith,  as  the  Apostle  conceives  it, 
is  to  be  distinguished  from  personal  righteousness,  or 
goodness,  as  an  attribute  of  human  character,  but  yet 
is  most  closely  connected  with  it.  Righteousness  of 
faith  opened  what  seemed  to  Paul  the  prosperous  way 
into  righteousness  of  daily  living.  In  the  very  hour 
when  he  first  believed  for  righteousness,  he  felt  him- 
self entering  a  kingdom  of  light,  and  love,  and  power,  in 
which  all  things  were  possible  ;  and  ever  after  the  same 
order  of  experience  verified  itself  for  him  afresh.  The 
righteousness   of    faith    being   the  relation   in   which, 


224  THE  EPISTLE    TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


through  Christ,  he  found  himself  standing  to  God,  fixed 
at  the  same  time  his  relation  to  all  Christian  benefits, 
including,  as  a  principal  element,  conformity  to  the 
likeness  of  Christ.  To  the  man  in  Christ  all  these 
benefits  pertained  ;  in  Christ  he  could  claim  them  all : 
in  Christ  he  found  himself  before  doors  that  opened 
of  their  own  accord  to  let  him  in ;  in  Christ  it  proved 
to  be  a. fit  thing,  grounded  deep  in  the  congruities 
of  God's  administration,  that  God  should  be  for  him  ; 
therefore,  also,  the  pathway  of  holiness  lay  open  before 
him.  The  fulness  of  blessing  had  not  yet  come  into 
possession  and  experience.  But  in  the  righteousness 
of  faith  he  apprehended  all  blessings  as  stretching  out 
their  hands  to  him,  because  through  Christ  they  ought  to 
be  his.  That  he  should  find  himself  in  a  relation  to  God 
so  simple  and  so  satisfying  was  wonderful ;  all  the  more, 
when  it  was  contrasted  with  the  condemnation  belong- 
ing to  him  as  a  sinner.  This  was  the  righteousness 
from  God  to  faith,  in  the  strength  of  which  he  could 
call  all  things  his  own. 

If  Paul  had  succeeded  in  the  enterprise  of  his  earlier 
days,  when  he  sought  righteousness  by  the  law,  he 
would,  as  he  hoped,  have  found  acceptance  in  the  end ; 
and  various  blessings  would  have  followed.  He  would 
have  emerged  from  his  task  a  man  stamped  as  right- 
eous, and  fit  to  be  treated  accordingly.  That  would 
have  been  the  end.  But  now,  in  reference  to  his  present 
enterprise,  he  has  found,  being  in  Christ,  acceptance  at 
the  beginning.     So  often  as  faith    Hfts  him  into  the 


iii.  9.]  THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS   OF  FAITH.  225 


heavenly  places  where  Christ  is,  he  finds  all  things  to 
be  his ;  not  because  he  has  achieved  righteousness,  but 
because  Christ  has  died  and  risen,  and  because  God 
justifies  him  who  believes  in  Jesus.  The  platform  he 
hoped  to  reach  by  the  efforts  of  a  lifetime  is  already 
under  his  feet.  Paul  faces  each  arduous  step  in  his 
new  enterprise,  strong  in  the  conviction  that  his  stand- 
ing before  God  is  rooted,  not  in  his  doings  nor  in  his 
feehngs,  but  in  his  Saviour  in  whom  he  holds  the 
righteousness  of  faith. 

We  need  not  conceal  from  ourselves,  however,  that 
many  find  the  doctrine  thus  ascribed  to  Paul  unaccept- 
able. If  they  do  not  count  it  positively  misleading, 
as  some  do,  they  yet  regard  it  as  unprofitable 
theory. 

Apart  from  objections  drawn  from  theology  or 
morals  or  texts,  they  argue,  for  example,  that  it  is  all 
in  the  air,  away  from  real  experience.  Christian 
religion  is  a  practical  matter, — a  question  of  improved 
dispositions,  improved  habits,  and  improved  prospects. 
If,  through  Christ,  such  things  as  these  arise  for  us, 
if,  through  Him,  influences  reach  us  that  tend  to  such 
results,  then  those  are  the  practical  specimens  which 
interpret  to  us  a  Saviour's  kmdness.  To  know  Christ 
in  these  must  be  the  true  knowledge  of  Him.  To 
carry  us  away  beforehand  into  the  region  of  a  supposed 
relation  to  God  is  a  precarious,  and  may  be  a  delusive 
business  ;  it  is,  at  any  rate,  a  dogmatic  nicety  rather 
than  a  vital  element  in  religion.     If  we  are  to  experience 

15 


226  THE  EPISTLE    TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


God's  mercy  or  Christ's  kindness  in  any  practical  form, 
then  that  is  to  be  so  ;  and  it  is  shorter  to  say  so  at 
once.  Let  us  fix  on  that,  without  interposing  any 
doctrine  of  '^righteousness  by  faith." 

But  it  must  be  said,  in  reply,  that  to  speak  of  this 
righteousness  of  faith  as  unpractical,  is  a  strange  mis- 
take.    All  religion  aims  at  fellowship  with  God ;  and 
in  Christian  rehgion  that  fellowship  becomes  real  and 
authentic  in  Christ.     Through  all  exercises  and  attain- 
ments of  Christian  rehgion  that  are  genuine,  this  thread 
goes.     We    have  access  to  God,  and  we  abide  in  the 
Father  and  the  Son.     How  imperfectly  this  takes  place 
on  our  part  need  not  be  said.     The  imperfection  on  our 
part   is,   indeed,   only   exceeded  by  the  condescension 
on  His.     Yet  our  faith  is  that  this  is  real,  otherwise 
Christianity   would   not  be   for  us  the  opening  of  an 
eternal  blessedness.     How  can  it  be  judged  unpractical, 
if  God  reveals  to  men,  first,  that  in  the  room  of  those 
confused  and  melancholy  relations  to  God  which  arise 
for  us  out  of  our  own  past  history.  He  has  constituted 
for  us  a  relation,  apprehensible  by  faith,  in  which  we 
find  ourselves  pardoned,  accepted,  commended  to  God 
to    be  made  partakers  of  life  eternal ;  and,    secondly, 
that  this  is  grounded  in  the  service  and  sacrifice  of  His 
Son,   sent   forth    to    save   us ;    so  that  we  enter  this 
relation  and  hold  it,  not  independently,  but  in  fellow- 
ship with  the  Son  of  God,  His  sonship  becoming  the 
model  of  ours  ?     Is  this  unpractical  ?     Is  it  unpractical 
to   be   conscious  of  such  a  relation  between  God  and 


iii.  9.]  THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS   OF  FAITH  227 


men,  for  ever  embodied  and  made  accessible  in  His 
Son  our  Saviour  ?  Is  it  unpractical  to  apprehend  God 
in  the  attitude  towards  us  which  is  due  to  such  a 
relation,  and  to  take,  ourselves,  the  attitude  of  gratitude 
and  penitence  and  trust  which  on  our  side  corresponds 
to  it  ?  It  cannot  be  unpractical.  It  may  be  pernicious, 
if  it  takes  the  form  of  a  cold,  presumptuous  arrogance, 
or  of  a  self-satisfied  Pharisaism  ;  that  is  to  say,  if  God 
be  not  in  it.  But  if  God  in  Christ  is  reaching  us  along 
those  lines,  or  if  we,  alive  to  His  eternal  character,  and 
conscious  of  our  guilt  and  need,  are  reaching  out  to 
real  relations  and  real  fellowship  with  Him  through 
His  Son  our  Lord,  then  it  cannot  be  unpractical.  And, 
indeed,  however  men  may  differ  as  to  theological 
explanations,  some  sense  of  the  worth  of  the  thing 
intended  has  reached  the  hearts  of  all  true  Christians. 

Perhaps  the  state  of  the  case  will  more  clearly  appear 
if  we  fix  attention  on  one  Christian  benefit.  Let  us 
take  the  forgiveness  of  sins. 

Forgiveness  of  sins  is  the  primary  grace,  and  it  sets 
the  type  of  the  grace  to  which  we  owe  all  benefits. 
Forgiveness,  as  it  were,  leads  in  all  other  blessings 
by  the  hand ;  or,  each  blessing  as  it  advances  into  a 
Christian  life  comes  with  a  fresh  gift  of  forgiveness  in 
the  heart  of  it.  If  this  is  so,  then  the  tendency,  which 
is  observable  in  various  quarters,  to  pass  forgiveness 
by,  as  a  matter  of  course,  and  to  hurry  on  to  what 
are  reckoned  more  substantial,  or  more  experimental 
benefits,    must   be   attended   with    loss.      It  must,    so 


228  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


far,  damage  our  conceptions  of  the  manner  in  which 
it  befits  God  to  bestow  blessings  on  sinful  men,  and 
also  our  conception  of  the  spirit  in  which  we  should 
receive  them. 

But  then,  in  the  next  place,  the  forgiveness  of  sins 
itself  is  referred  to  the  mediation  of  Christ,  and  the 
work  accomplished  in  that  mediation,  as  its  known 
basis.  Forgiveness  of  sins  was  to  arise  out  of  an 
order  of  grace,  embodied  in  history — namely,  in  the 
history  of  the  Incarnate  Son  of  God  ;  and  we  are  not 
entitled  to  take  for  granted  it  could  fitly  arise  otherwise. 
Apparently  Christ  Himself  came  into  the  inheritance 
which  He  holds  for  us,  by  an  order  of  things  which  it 
was  imperative  on  Him  to  regard,  and  by  a  history 
which  He  must  fulfil.  And  we,  believing  in  Him,  find, 
in  consequence,  a  new  place  and  standing ;  we  receive 
a  "  gift  of  righteousness  "  which  contains  the  forgive- 
ness of  sins  ;  we  obtain,  through  Christ,  a  mode  o 
access  to  God,  of  which  forgiveness  is  a  feature.  So 
the  place  of  forgiveness  in  the  Divine  administration 
is  vindicated  and  safe-guarded ;  and  while  forgiveness 
comes  to  us  as  a  gift  of  the  Father's  compassionate 
heart,  it  is  found  to  be  true  also  that  "  Christ  washed 
us  from  our  sins  in  His  own  blood."  "God  sent  His 
Son,  made  of  a  woman,  made  under  the  law,  to  redeem 
them  that  were  under  the  law."  "  God  hath  sent  Him 
forth  for  a  propitiation,  through  faith  in  His  blood,  to 
declare  His  righteousness  for  the  remission  of  sins  that 
are  past,  .  .   .  that  He  might  be  just,  and  the  Justifier 


iii.  9.]  THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  FAITH.  229 


of  him  that  believeth  in  Jesus."  Our  forgiveness  is  a 
free  gift  of  God's  goodness  ;  yet  also,  it  is  our  par- 
ticipation with  Christ,  sent  to  us  from  the  Father,  in  a 
wonderful  relation  which  He  has  come  to  hold  to  sin 
and  to  righteousness.  If  we  overlook  this,  we  conceal 
from  ourselves  great  aspects  of  the  work  undertaken 
for  us  by  the  love  of  God. 

But  if  forgiveness,  which  is  itself  a  meeting  with 
God  in  peace,  refers  itself  to  the  mediation  of  Christ  as 
preparing  for  us  a  blessed  relation  to  God — a  righteous- 
ness of  faith — how  should  our  whole  fellowship  with 
God,  in  grace,  fail  to  presuppose  the  same  foundation  ? 

But  argument  upon  this  topic  might  lead  us  far. 
Let  us  close  the  chapter  in  another  vein. 

All  religion,  worth  recognising  in  that  character, 
implies  earnestness,  serious  aspiration  and  endeavour. 
It  supposes  human  life  to  place  itself  under  the  influence 
of  an  order  of  motives  that  is  to  be  comprehensive 
and  commanding.  And  this  is  true  also  of  Christian 
religion.  But  Christian  religion,  as  we  know,  does 
not  begin  with  a  consciousness  of  ability  to  achieve 
success  ;  it  is  not  grounded  in  an  expectation  that  by 
strenuous  or  apt  effort  of  ours,  we  may  achieve  the 
aims  and  secure  the  benefits  at  which  religion  points. 
That  is  not  the  root  of  Christian  religion.  It  begins 
with  a  consciousness  and  confession  of  weakness  :  the 
soul  owns  its  incompetency  to  deal  with  the  great 
interests  that  reveal  themselves  in  the  light  of  Christ  ; 
it  is  without  strength  for  tasks  like  these.     And  so  the 


230  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHIPPIANS. 

deepest  and  earliest  exercise  of  Christian  religion  is 
Prayer.  It  asks  great  things  from  a  great  God.  *'  This 
poor  man  cried,"  and  the  Lord  heard  him.  Paul's 
Christianity  began  thus  :  "  Behold,  he  prayeth." 

Now  just  so  Christian  religion  does  not  begin  with  a 
consciousness  of  deserving  something,  or  an  idea  that 
by  taking  pains  we  may  deserve  something,  may  single 
ourselves  out  for  at  least  some  modest  share  of  favour- 
able recognition.  Rather  it  often  begins  with  the  fading 
away  of  such  ideas  when  they  were  present  before. 
Christian  religion  roots  itself  in  the  confession  of  sin, 
and  therefore  of  ill-desert ;  it  signalises  itself  by  a 
deepening  sense  of  the  seriousness  of  the  situation  in 
this  respect.  With  this  it  comes  face  to  face  before 
God.  "  I  will  confess  my  transgressions  unto  the 
Lord."  ''  God  be  merciful  to  me  a  sinner."  We  have 
nothing  that  is  not  sinful  to  bring  before  Him ;  so,  at 
length,  we  come  with  that.  It  is  all  we  have.  Our 
prayer  rises  not  merely  out  of  the  sense  of  weakness, 
but  out  of  the  consciousness  of  demerit. 

But  in  Christian  religion  we  are  aware,  as  of  strength 
which  can  remedy  our  weakness,  so  of  forgiveness 
which  can  put  away  our  sins.  "  There  is  forgiveness 
with  Thee."  "  Through  this  Man  is  preached  to  us  the 
forgiveness  of  sins."  It  is  clear  also  that  this  forgive- 
ness comes,  wherever  it  comes,  as  full  and  free  forgive- 
ness, ^'  forgiving  you  all  trespasses."  So  that  in 
Christian  religion  we  listen  at  Christ's  feet  to  the 
testimony  directed  to  all  penitent  believers,  that  instead 


iii.  9.1  THE   RIGHTEOUSNESS   OF  FAITH.  231 


of  reckoning  in  part  or  whole  about  the  guilt  of  sins 
committed,  we  are  to  find  God  in  Christ  to  be  One  who 
simply  puts  away  our  sin.  That  shall  hold  us  apart 
from  God  no  more.  Rather,  the  putting  of  it  away 
brings  with  it  the  strangest,  lowliest  access  to  God. 
'*  O  God,  thou  art  my  God."  ''  Who  is  a  God  like  unto 
Thee  ?  "  Forgiveness  is  by  no  means  mere  immunity 
(least  of  all  for  Christian  religion).  Punishment,  cer- 
tainly, in  the  sense  of  the  separation  and  evil  which  sin 
deserves,  passes  away.  But  forgiveness,  in  Christian 
religion,  is  forgiveness  ivith  the  Forgive}'  in  it.  We 
meet  God  in  the  forgiveness  of  sins.  We  abide  with 
God  in   the   forgiveness  of  sins. 

Forgiveness,  too,  as  we  already  foresee,  is  but  the 
foundation  and  beginning  of  a  history  in  which  we 
are  called  to  go  forward.  This  history  may  have  sad 
passages  in  it ;  but  in  going  forward  in  it  in  faith  we 
are  assured  that  on  God's  part  it  is  a  history  of  most 
painstaking  and  most  sublime  benefaction  :  all  of  it 
ordered  so  as  to  be  of  a  piece  with  I  lis  sending  of  His 
Son  ;  all  of  it  instinct  with  the  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ.  Faith  looking  to  Christ  believes  this,  and 
receives  it.  And  to  faith  upheld  by  Him  on  whom  we 
trust  all  this  is  more  and  more  made  good,  and  comes 
true.  It  is  a  history  of  progress  in  true  goodness. 
And  the  end  is  life  everlasting. 

Now  the  words  before  us  suggest,  upon  the  one 
hand,  very  strongly,  the  simply  gratuitous  character  of 
the  Christian   benefits,    and   the   sense  of   undeserved 


232  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


kindness  with  which  they  are  to  be  received.  In 
Christian  rehgion  we  begin  as  those  who  have  no 
righteousness,  who  plead  no  merit,  who  owe  and  are 
to  owe  all  to  Divine  mercy.  From  the  base  upwards 
Christian  religion  is  a  religion  of  grace  ;  and  "  it  is  of 
faith,  that  it  might  be  by  grace."  Whatever  activities, 
whatever  successes  may  fall  into  the  Christian's  career, 
whatever  long  possession  of  accustomed  good  may 
eventually  mark  his  experience,  all  is  to  be  informed 
and  inspired  by  this  initial  and  perpetual  conviction, 
^'  Not  having  mine  own  righteousness,  which  is  of  the 
law." 

At  the  same  time,  the  same  words  of  the  Apostle 
suggest  very  strongly  the  Divine  stability  of  the  good 
which  meets  us  in  Christ.  A  very  strong  foundation 
has  been  laid  for  those  who  flee  for  refuge  to  lay  hold 
of  the  hope  set  before  them  in  the  gospel.  To  our 
sense,  indeed,  things  may  seem  to  be  most  mutable. 
But  when  faith  reaches  to  the  things  not  seen,  it  learns 
another  lesson.  In  Christ  believers  are  graced  with 
entrance  into  an  order  of  salvation  divinely  strong  and 
durable.  When  God  gave  us  Christ,  He  gave  us,  in  a 
sense,  ''all  things,"  and  indeed  all  things  ordering 
themselves  into  an  eternal  expression  of  fatherly  love 
and  care.  In  Christ  comes  into  view  not  goodness 
only,  but  goodness  allying  itself  for  us  with  Wisdom 
and  Power  and  Right.  It  makes  its  way  by  incarnation 
and  atonement  and  resurrection  to  a  kingdom  which, 
being   first    Christ's,  appointed    to    Him,  is    also    His 


ii.  9.]  THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS   OF  FAITH.  233 


people's,  appointed  to  them.  Now  a  relation  to  God 
which  looks  forward  to  all  this,  which  is  the  basis  for  it 
and  the  entrance  to  it,  descends  on  the  believing  man 
through  Christ.  It  is  due  to  Christ  that  it  slipuld 
come  so.  It  is  the  Father's  loving  will  that  it  should 
be  so.  All  that  is  needful  to  ground  and  vindicate  that 
most  gracious  relation  is  found  in  Christ,  who  of  God 
is  made  unto  us  righteousness  ;  in  whom  we  hold  the 
righteousness  which  is  of  God  on  faith. 

The  Apostle's  course  of  thought  has  not  led  us  to 
raise  any  question  about  the  nature  and  the  virtue  of 
the  faith  which  apprehends  and  receives  the  righteous- 
ness of  God.  It  is  a  subject  on  which  much  has  been 
said.     What  seems  needful  here  may  be  soon  spoken. 

The  only  way  of  entering  on  new  relations  with  God, 
or  ourselves  becoming  new  men,  is  the  way  of  faith. 
This  Christian  way  is  the  only  way.  Every  other  is 
simply  impossible.  Let  any  man  seriously  try  it,  and 
he  will  find  it  so.  But  the  question,  What  kind  of 
faith  ?  is  best  answered  by  saying.  Such  faith  as  is 
called  for  by  the  object  of  faith  set  before  us,  when  that 
is  honestly  and  intently  regarded.  As  the  gospel  is, 
the  faith  must  be  ;  for  the  gospel  is  the  instrument 
by  which  faith  is  evoked,  sustained,  and  guided.  The 
great  object  of  faith  is  God,  graciously  revealing  Himself 
through  Christ.  Every  genuine  aspect  of  this  revela- 
tion takes  its  significance  from  its  disclosure  of  God. 
The  faith,  so  called,  which  misses  this,  is  wrong  faith  ; 
the  faith  which  marks  and  welcomes  this  is  right  faith. 


234  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHTLIPPIANS. 

And  such  faith  is  already,  even  in  its  earliest  life, 
breaking  forth  into  repentance  and  love  and  obedience. 
It  must  be,  for  God  is  in  it. 

So,  to  confine  ourselves  to  the  aspect  of  things  which 
occupies  this  chapter,  the  faith  which  meets  God  in  the 
forgiveness  of  sins  through  Christ,  and  genuinely 
accepts  from  Him  the  wonderful  position  of  holding 
fellowship  with  God  forgiving,  is  already,  virtually, 
repentance  as  well  as  faith.  The  man  who  so  meets 
with  God,  is  therein  agreed  with  God  about  his  own 
sin  :  he  feels  God  to  be  in  the  right  and  himself  to  be 
wholly  in  the  wrong ;  he  feels,  in  particular,  God  to  be 
most  sublimely  and  conclusively  in  the  right  in  the  holy 
pity  of  His  forgiveness.  The  man  who  does  not  feel 
this,  is  not  accepting  forgiveness.  He  ma}^  be  postur- 
ing as  if  he  were,  but  he  is  not  doing  it. 

There  is  just  one  difficulty  in  faith— the  difficulty  of 
being  real.  But  when  it  is  real,  it  makes  all  things 
new. 


RESURRECTION  LIFE  AND  DAILY  DYING. 


235 


"That  I  may  know  Him,  and  the  power  of  His  resurrection,  and  the 
fellowship  of  His  sufferings,  becoming  conformed  unto  His  death  ;  if 
by  any  means  I  may  attain  unto  the  resurrection  from  the  dead."' — • 
Phil.  iii.  lo,  ii. 


236 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

RESURRECTION  LIFE  AND  DAILY  DYING. 

WE  have  still   other  aspects  to   consider  of  that 
"  gain  "  which  the  Apostle  descried  in  Christ, 
for  the  sake  of  which  he  had  cast  so  much  away. 

To  prize  the  righteousness  of  faith  was  an  element 
in  the  true  knowledge  of  Christ ;  but  it  was  so  far  from 
exhausting  that  knowledge,  that  it  only  opened  a  door 
of  progress,  and  brought  near  the  most  stirring  pos- 
sibilities. For,  indeed,  to  be  found  in  Christ  having 
that  righteousness  meant  that  God  in  Christ  was  his, 
and  had  begun  to  communicate  Himself  in  eternal  Hfe. 
Now  this  must  still  reveal  itself  in  further  and  fuller 
knowledge  of  Christ.  According  to  the  Apostle's  con- 
ception, that  which  Christ  means  to  be  to  us,  that 
which  we  may  attain  to  be  by  Christ,  opens  progres- 
sively to  the  soul  that  has  been  won  to  this  pursuit ;  it 
comes  into  view  and  into  experience  in  a  certain  grow- 
ing knowledge.  It  is  a  practical  historical  career  ;  and 
the  Apostle  was  set  on  achieving  it,  not  by  strength  or 
wisdom  of  his  own,  but  by  the  continual  communication 
of  grace,  responding  to  desire  and  prayer  and  endeavour. 

337 


238  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


We  must  not  forget,  what  has  more  than  once  been 
said,  that  this  earthly  Hfe  of  ours  is  the  scene  in  which 
the  discipHne  goes  on,  in  which  the  career  is  achieved. 
It  is  the  caUing  here  and  now,  not  at  some  other  stage 
of  being,  that  the  Apostle  is  thinking  of  for  himself  and 
for  his  disciples.  And  as  earthly  life  is  the  scene,  so 
earthly  life  also  furnishes  the  occasions  and  oppor- 
tunities by  which  the  knowledge  of  Christ  is  to 
advance.  Any  other  way  of  it  is  for  us  inconceivable. 
This  life  in  all  the  various  forms  which  it  assumes  for 
different  men,  in  all  the  changing  experiences  which  it 
brings  to  each  of  us — life  on  the  earth  we  know  so 
well — with  its  joy  and  sorrow,  its  labour  and  rest,  its 
gifts  and  its  bereavements,  its  friends  and  foes,  its 
times  and  places,  its  exercise  and  interest  for  body 
and  mind,  for  intellect  and  heart  and  conscience,  with 
its  temptations  and  its  better  influences, — life  must 
furnish  the  opportunities  for  acquiring  this  practical 
knowledge  of  Christ.  For  that  which  falls  to  us,  if 
we  are  in  Christ,  is  a  certain  blessed  well-being  (itself 
an  unfolding  of  Christ's  wisdom  and  grace).  And  this 
must  impart  itself,  and  reveal  itself,  in  our  actual  ex- 
perience, but  in  an  experience  which  we  pass  through 
under  the  guidance  of  Christ. 

This  familiar  life,  then,  is  the  scene  ;  it  alone  can 
furnish  the  opportunities.  And  yet  what  the  Apostle 
apprehends,  as  coming  into  possession  and  experience, 
is  a  life  of  a  higher  style,  a  life  set  on  a  nobler  key :  it 
is  a  life  that  has  its  centre  and  source  and  true  type 


iii.  lo,  11. J   RESURRECTION  LIFE  AND  DAILY  DYING.    239 

elsewhere  ;  it  belongs  to  a  higher  region  ;  indeed,  it  is 
a  life  whose  perfect  play  pertains  to  another,  coming 
world.  Capacity  for  such  a  life  is  not  something  super- 
human ;  it  is  congenital  to  man,  made  in  the  image  of 
God.  And  yet,  if  these  capacities  unfold,  man's  life 
must,  in  the  end,  become  other  than  we  know  it  now  ; 
with  a  new  proportioning  of  elements,  with  a  new 
order  of  experience,  with  new  harmonies,  with  aptitudes 
for  love  and  service  and  worship  that  are  beyond  us 
now.  Only  now,  they  begin  and  grow ;  they  are  now 
to  be  aimed  at,  and  realised  in  earnest  and  firstfruit, 
and  embraced  in  hope.  For  they  are  elements  in  the 
knowledge  of  Christ,  who  is  ours  to  know. 

This  is  indicated  in  the  Apostle's  aspiration  after 
knowing  Christ  in  the  power  of  His  resurrection,  and 
his  yearning  if  by  any  means  he  might  attain  to  the 
resurrection  of  the  dead. 

The  resurrection  of  Christ  marked  the  acceptance  of 
His  w^ork  by  the  Father,  and  revealed  the  triumph  in 
which  that  work  ended.  Death  and  all  the  power  of 
the  enemy  were  overcome,  and  victory  was  attained. 
For  one  thing,  the  resurrection  of  Christ  made  sure  the 
righteousness  of  faith.  He  rose  again  for  our  justifica- 
tion. So  every  passage  of  the  Apostle's  life  which  proved 
that  his  confidence  in  that  respect  was  not  vain,  that 
God  in  Christ  was  truly  his  God,  was  an  experience  of 
the  power  of  Christ's  resurrection.  But  the  resurrection 
of  Christ  was  also  His  emergence — His  due  emergence 
— into  the  power  and  blessedness  of  victorious  life.     In 


240  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


the  Person  of  Christ  Hfe  in  God,  and  unto  God,  had 
descended  into  the  hard  conditions  set  for  Him  who 
would  associate  a  world  of  sinners  to  Himself.  In  the 
resurrection  the  triumph  of  that  enterprise  came  to 
light.  Now,  done  with  sin,  and  free  from  death,  and 
asserting  His  superiority  to  all  humiliation  and  all 
conflict,  He  rose  in  the  fulness  of  a  power  which  He 
was  entitled  also  to  communicate.  He  rose,  with  full 
right  and  power  to  save.  And  so  His  resurrection 
denotes  Christ  as  able  to  inspire  life,  and  to  make  it 
victorious  in  His  members. 

When,  then,  Paul  says  that  he  would  know  Christ 
in  the  power  of  His  resurrection,  he  aims  at  a  life 
(already  his,  but  capable  of  far  more  adequate  develop- 
ment) conformed  to  the  life  which  triumphed  in  the 
risen  Christ,  one  with  that  in  principle,  in  character, 
and  in  destiny.  This  was,  in  the  meantime,  to  be 
human  life  on  the  earth,  with  the  known  elements 
and  conditions  of  that  life  ;  including,  in  Paul's  case, 
some  that  were  hard  enough.  But  it  was  to  be  trans- 
formed from  within,  inspired  with  a  new  meaning  and 
aim.  It  was  to  have  its  elements  polarised  anew, 
organised  by  new  forces  and  in  a  new  rhythm.  It  was, 
and  was  to  be,  pervaded  by  peace  with  God,  by  the 
consciousness  of  redemption,  by  dedication  to  service- 
It  was  to  include  a  recoil  from  evil,  and  a  sympathy 
with  goodness, — elements  these  which  might  be  so  far 
thought  of  as  a  reverting  to  the  unfallen  state.  But  it 
had  more  in  it,  because  it  was  based  on  redemption^ 


iii.  lo,  II.]    RESURRECTION  LIFE  AND  DAILY  DYING.    241 


and  rooted  in  Christ  who  died  and  rose  again.  It  was 
baptised  with  the  passion  of  gratitude ;  it  was  drawn 
into  the  effort  to  build  up  the  Redeemer's  kingdom  ; 
and  it  aimed  at  a  better  country. 

So  while  the  Hfe  we  know  so  well  was  the  sphere  in 
which  this  experience  fulfilled  itself,  the  longings  it 
included  pointed  to  an  existence  higher  up  and  further 
on — to  an  existence  only  to  be  reached  by  resurrection 
from  the  dead,  an  existence  certainly  promised  to  be  so 
reached.  All  the  effort  and  the  longing  pointed  to  that 
door  of  hope  ;  Paul  was  reaching  on  to  the  resurrection 
of  the  dead.  For  that  blessed  resurrection  would  con- 
summate and  fulfil  the  likeness  to  Christ  and  the 
fellowship  with  Him,  and  would  usher  into  a  manner 
of  being  where  the  experience  of  both  should  be 
unimpeded.  The  life  of  "  knowing  Christ "  could 
not  be  contented  here,  could  not  rest  satisfied  short 
of  that  consummation.  For  indeed  to  be  with  Christ 
and  to  labour  for  Christ  here  on  earth  was  good  ; 
yet  so  that  to  depart  and  be  with  Christ  was  far 
better. 

We  have  here  to  do  with  the  active  and  victorious 
aspect  of  Christian  life,  the  energy  in  it  that  makes  it 
new  and  great.  It  holds  by  a  title  and  it  draws  from  a 
source  which  must  be  looked  for,  both  of  them,  high 
up  in  heaven.  Something  in  it  has  already  triumphed 
over  death. 

It  may  be  felt,  however,  that  there  is  some  danger 
here  lest  the  great  words  of  Paul  may  carry  us  off  our 

\6 


242  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHUJPPIANS. 


feet,  and  divorce  us  from  terra  firma  altogether.  Some 
one  may  ask,  But  what  does  all  this  mean  in  practice  ? 
What  sort  of  life  is  it  to  be  ?  Apostles  can  soar,  per- 
haps ;  but  how  about  the  man  in  the  workshop  or  in  the 
counting-house,  or  the  woman  busied  in  family  cares  ? 
A  life  in  "  the  power  of  a  resurrection  "  seems  to  be 
something  that  transcends  earthly  conditions  altogether. 
These  are  perfectly  fair  questions,  and  one  should  try 
to  meet  them  with  a  plain  reply. 

The  life  in  view  is  first  of  all  goodness  in  its  ordinary 
sense,    or   what   we  call    common    morality — common 
honesty,  common  truthfulness,  common  kindness.     *'  Let 
him  that  stole  steal  no  more,  but  rather  let  him  labour  "  ; 
^*  Not  slothful  in  business  " ;  ''  Lie  not  one  to  another, 
seeing  ye  have  put  off  the  old  man   with  his    deeds." 
But  then  this  common  morality  begins  to  have  an  un- 
common heart  or  spirit  in  it,  by  reason  of  Christ.      So 
a  new  love  for  goodness  and  a  new  energy  of  rejection 
of  evil   begin    to  work  ;  also,   a   new  sensitiveness  to 
discern  good,  where  its  obligation  was  not  felt  before, 
and  to  be  aware  of  evil  which,  before,  was  tolerated. 
Moreover,  in  the  heart  of  this   '^  common  morality  "  the 
man  carries  about  a  consciousness  of  his  own  relation 
to  God,  and  also  of  the  relation  to  God  of  all  with  whom 
he  meets.     This  consciousness  is  very  imperfect,  some- 
times perhaps  almost  vanishes.      Yet  the  man  is  aware 
that  an  immense  truth  is  here  close  to  him,  and  he  has 
begun  to  be  alive  to  it.      This  consciousness  tends  to 
give  a  new  value  to  all  the  "moralities":  it  awakens  a 


iii.  lo,  II.]   RESURRECTION  LIFE  AND  DAILY  DYING.    243 


new  percipiency  as  to  good  and  evil ;  in  particular,  the 
great  duty  of  purity  in  relation  to  the  man  himself,  and 
to  others,  acquires  a  new  sacredness.  The  place  and 
claims  of  self  also  begin  to  be  judged  by  a  quite  new 
standard.  In  all  directions  possibilities  of  good  and 
evil  in  human  life  are  descried  ;  and  the  obligation  to 
refuse  the  evil  and  to  choose  the  good  presses  with  a 
new  force.  So  far,  the  remark  made  a  little  ago  is 
justified,  that  the  Christian  life  of  Paul  was  a  life  that 
had  begun  to  point  practically  towards  sinlessncss, 
towards  what  we  call  an  unfallen  state  ;  however  far 
oft'  it  might  be,  as  yet,  from  that  attainment.  But  this 
would  be  a  very  limited  account  of  the  matter.  The 
whole  region  of  duty  and  privilege  Godwards  is  lighted 
up  now  by  the  faith  of  redemption  in  Christ ;  that  not 
only  awakens  gratitude,  but  inspires  a  new  passion  of 
desire  and  hope  into  all  moral  eftbrt.  And  the  man, 
being  now  aware  of  a  kingdom  of  goodness  set  up  by 
Christ,  which  is  making  its  way  to  victory  against  all 
the  power  of  evil,  and  being  aware  of  the  agencies  by 
which  it  works,  must  give  himself  in  his  own  place  to 
the  service  of  that  kingdom,  that  he  may  not  hurt  but 
help  the  cause  which  it  embodies.  The  new  life  is 
therefore  to  be  an  energetic  life  of  the  plainest  goodness. 
Only  faith  places  it  in  relation  to  the  world  of  faith,  and 
inspires  it  with  the  passion  of  love  and  gratitude,  and 
amplifies  it  by  the  new  horizons  that  fall  back  on  all 
sides,  and  gives  it  a  goal  in  the  hope  of  life  eternal. 
Returning  to  the  instance  of  the  Apostle  Paul,  one 


244  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


observes  from  his  account  of  it  that  the  regard  of  the 
believer  to  Christ,    such   regard  as   may   actually   be 
attained  and  operative  in  this  hfe,  ought  to  fructify  into 
desires  and   prayers  that  point  beyond  this    life,    and 
reach  out  to  the  resurrection  of  the  dead.     There  is  a 
contentedness  with  life  here  that  is  not  Christian.     It 
would  agree  well  with  a  thankful  use  of  earthly  comforts, 
and  a  cheerful  serenity  amid  earth's  changes,  that  we 
should  feel  our  home  and  our  treasure  to  be  in  another 
place,   and  the  enjoyment  of  them  to  lie  in  a  coming 
world.     Not  otherwise  shall  we  know  how  to  make  a 
right  Christian  use  and  have  a  right  Christian  enjoy- 
ment of  this  life.     We  are  not  prepared  to  get  the  full 
good  of  this  world  until  we  are  ready  and  willing  to  go 
out  of  it. 

Let  it  be  observed,  also,  how  the  Apostle  strove  to 
"  attain "  the  resurrection  of  the  dead.  The  great 
things  of  the  Kingdom  of  God  are  exhibited  in  various 
connections,  none  of  which  are  to  be  overlooked.  One 
of  these  connections  is  here  exhibited. 

We  know  that  in  Scripture  a  distinction  is  made 
between  the  resurrection  of  the  righteous  and  the 
resurrection  of  the  wicked.  A  solemn  obscurity  rests 
on  the  manner  and  the  principles  of  the  latter,  the 
resurrection  to  shame.  But  the  resurrection  of  the 
just  takes  place  in  virtue  of  their  union  to  Christ ;  it  is 
after  the  example  of  His  resurrection  ;  it  is  to  glory  and 
honour.  Now  this  resurrection,  while  it  is  most  ob- 
viously a  crowning  blessing  and   benefaction  coming 


iii.  lo,  II.]  RESURRECTION  LIFE  AND  DAILY  DYING.    245 

from  God,  is  represented  also  as  having  the  character 
of  an  attainment  made  by  us.  The  faith  in  which  we 
turn  to  God  is  the  beginning  of  a  course  leading  to  the 
"  end  of  our  faith,  the  salvation  of  our  souls."  This 
end  coincides  with  the  resurrection.  Then  the  hour 
comes  which  completes,  then  the  state  arrives  in  which 
is  completed,  the  redemption  of  the  man.  The  resur- 
rection rises  before  us,  therefore,  as  something  which, 
while  on  the  one  hand  promised  and  given  by  God, 
is,  on  the  other  hand,  "  attained  "  by  us.  Our  Lord 
(Luke  XX.  35)  speaks  of  those  who  shall  be  "counted 
worthy  to  attain  that  world,  and  the  resurrection  of  the 
dead." 

The    resurrection    is    promised    to    believers.     It    is 

promised  to  arise  to  them  in  sequel  to  a  certain  course — 

a  history  of  redemption,  made  good  in  their  lives.     How 

shall  the  disciple   verify   his  expectation  of  this  final 

benefit  ?     Not  surely  without  verifying  the  intermediate 

history.     The  way   must    point    towards    the    end — at 

Icastj  must  point  towards  it.     A  resurrection  state,   if 

it  be  like  Christ's,  how  much  must  it  include  !     What 

purity,  what  high  aptitudes,  what  delicate  congenialities  ! 

The  desires  of  the  true  Christian  life,  its  aspirations  and 

efforts,  as  well  as  the  promises  which  animate  and  the 

influences  which  sustain  it,  all  point  in  this  direction. 

But  how  if  in  any  case  this  prove  unreal,  deceptive  ;  how 

if  it  be  ostensible  only  ?     How  if  no  real  changes  take 

place,  or  if  they  die  out  again  ?     What  if  soul  and  body 

rise  unchanged,  the  soul  polluted,  and  so  the  very  body 


546  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PIIILIPPIANS. 


bearing  the  stamp  of  old  sins  ?  What  if  the  murderous 
eye  of  hate,  or  the  lurid  eye  of  lust,  shall  look  into  the 
eyes  of  Him  whose  eyes  are  as  a  flame  of  fire  ?  Accord- 
ingly this  connection  of  things  is  impressed  upon  us  by 
our  Apostle  (Rom.  viii.  ii)  :  "7/" the  Spirit  of  Him  that 
raised  up  Christ  from  the  dead  dwell  in  you,  He  that 
raised  up  Christ  from  the  dead  shall  also  quicken  your 
mortal  body  by  His  Spirit  which  dwelleth  in  you." 
While  we  live  here,  our  body,  however  disciplined,  must 
still  be  the  body  of  our  humiliation  (ver.  2l);  and  sin 
continues  to  beset  even  renewed  souls.  But  if  the 
Spirit  of  grace  is  even  now  bringing  all  into  subjection 
to  the  obedience  of  Christ,  enabling  us  to  die  to  sin 
and  to  live  to  righteousness,  that  points  forward  to  the 
completion  of  the  work,  in  the  resurrection  to  glory. 

This,  then,  is  one  view  in  which  the  Apostle  realises 
the  solemnity  and  interest  of  Christian  life.  It  is  the 
way  that  leads  up  to  such  a  resurrection.  The  resurrec- 
tion rises  before  him  as  the  consummate  triumph  of  that 
life  for  which  he  came  to  Christ,  the  life  which  he  longs 
perfectly  to  possess,  perfectly  to  know.  The  success 
of  his  great  venture  is  to  meet  Him  in  the  rising  from 
the  dead ;  his  course,  meanwhile,  is  a  striving  onwards 
to  it.  How  was  it  to  be  reached  ?  In  order  to  that, 
much  must  still  be  brought  into  experience  of  the 
resurrection  power  of  Christ.  Only  in  that  strength 
did  Paul  look  to  be  carried  to  the  point  at  which,  ending 
his  course,  he  should  lie  down  (if  he  died  before  Christ 
come)  in  the  blessed  hope  of  the  rising  from  the  dead. 


iii.  lo,  u.]   RESURRECTION  LIFE  AND  DAILY  DYING.    247 

For  this  he  looked  to  Christ  to  work  mightily  in  him  ; 
for  this  he  owned  himself  bound,  under  the  grace  of 
Christ,  to  strive  mightily,  if  '*  by  any  means"  he  might 
attain  to  it.  So  great  is  this  consummation  ;  so  great 
are  those  things  which  fitly  lead  up  to  it.  Is  it  not  a 
great  view  of  Christian  religion  that  it  sends  men  onward 
in  a  life  in  which  they  "  attain  "  to  the  resurrection  of 
the  dead  ?  Must  not  that  be  a  great  history  of  which 
this  is  the  appropriate  close  ? 

Paul,  then,  was  eager  to  go  forward  in  a  life  intense 
and  mighty,  drawing  on  a  great  power  to  sustain  it, 
and  rising  into  splendid  effects  and  results.  But  yet, 
in  respect  of  some  of  its  aspects,  it  rather  seemed  to 
the  Apostle  to  be  a  certain  deliberate  and  blessed  dying. 
At  least,  the  life  must  fulfil  and  realise  itself  along  such 
a  dying  ;  and  this  also,  this  emphatically,  he  pressed 
on  to  know — "  the  fellowship  of  His  sufferings,  being 
made  conformable  to  His  death." 

Our  Lord's  life  on  earth,  strong  and  beautiful  though 
it  was,  was  really  at  the  same  time  His  procedure  to- 
wards death.  He  lived  as  one  laying  down  His  life, 
not  merely  in  one  great  sacrifice  at  the  close,  but  from 
step  to  step  along  His  whole  earthly  history.  With  no 
touch  of  the  morbid  or  the  fanatical,  yet  His  course,  in 
practice,  had  to  be  one  of  self-impoverishment,  of  lone- 
liness, of  acquaintance  with  energetic  hostility  of  sin 
and  sinners.  It  had  to  be  so  if  it  was  to  be  faithful. 
He  knew  not  where  to  lay  His  head  ;  He  endured  the 
contradiction  of  sinners  against  Himself;  He  came  unto 


248  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHIPPIANS. 

His  own,  and  His  own  received  Him  not.  Even  His 
friends,  whom  He  so  loved,  and  who  loved  Him  in 
their  imperfect  way,  did  not  love  Him  wisely  or 
magnanimously,  and  constantly  became  occasions  of 
temptation  which  had  to  be  resisted.  Pain  and  trial 
were  the  inevitable  characters  of  the  work  given  Him 
to  do.  It  lay  in  His  calling  to  put  a  strong  and  faithful 
negative  on  the  natural  desire  for  safety,  for  happiness, 
for  congenial  society  and  surroundings,  for  free  and 
unembarrassed  life.  All  this  He  had  steadily  to  post- 
pone to  a  period  beyond  the  grave,  and  meanwhile 
make  His  way  to  the  final  crisis,  at  which,  under  a 
mysterious  burden  of  extreme  sorrow,  accepted  as  the 
Saviour's  proper  portion.  He  died  for  our  sins.  By 
this  sacrifice  He  did,  no  doubt,  relieve  His  followers  of 
a  burden  which  they  never  could  have  borne.  But  yet 
in  doing  so  He  made  it  possible  for  them  to  enter, 
happily  and  hopefully,  on  a  life  so  far  hke  His  own. 
Their  life,  too,  comes  to  be  governed  by  a  decision, 
maintained  and  persisted  m,  for  God's  will,  and  against 
the  impulse,  in  their  case  the  impure  and  treacherous 
impulse,  of  their  own  will.  They  also,  in  their  turn, 
but  under  His  influence  and  with  His  loving  succour, 
have  so  to  live  as  in  that  life  to  die.  They  learn  to  say 
"No"  for  their  Master's  sake  to  many  objects  which 
strongly  appeal  to  them.  They  consent  to  postpone 
the  period  of  perfectly  harmonious  life,  free  and  un- 
impeded, to  the  time  which  lies  beyond  death.  They 
must  count  their  true  life  to  be  that  which,  perfectly 


iii.  lo,  11.]    RESURRECTION  LIFE  AND  DAILY  DYING.    249 


conformed  to  and  associated  with  theii'  Master's  life, 
they  shall  live  in  another  scene  of  things.  Meanwhile, 
as  to  the  elements  of  this  world,  the  life  which  stands 
in  these  must  die,  or  they  must  die  to  it,  growing  into 
the  mind  of  their  Lord. 

It  is  difficult  to  speak  of  this  without,  on  the  one 
hand,  conveying  a  strained  and  unreal  view  of  the 
Christian's  attitude  towards  the  present  life,  or,  on  the 
other  hand,  weakening  too  much  the  sense  of  "  con- 
formity to  His  death."  In  the  first  place,  the  Christian's 
dying  is  mainly,  and  certainly  it  is  first  of  all,  a 
dying  to  sin,  a  mortifying  the  flesh  with  the  affec- 
tions and  lusts.  It  is  the  practical  renunciation  of 
evil,  along  with  the  maintenance  of  the  watchfulness 
and  self-discipline  needed  in  order  to  be  ready  to  re- 
nounce evil  when  it  comes.  Evil  has  to  be  rejected, 
not  merely  by  itself,  but  at  the  cost  of  those  earthly 
interests  which  are  involved  in  the  surrender  to  it, 
however  dear  or  constraining  those  interests  may 
seem  to  be  ;  so  that  conformity  to  Christ's  death,  if 
it  covered  no  more,  would  still  cover  a  great  deal  of 
ground.  But  it  seems  to  cover  something  more — 
namely,  a  general  loosening  of  the  grasp  upon  this  life, 
or  on  the  temporary  and  sensible  elements  of  it,  in 
view  of  the  worth  and  certainty  of  the  higher  and  the 
better  life.  This  life,  indeed,  as  long  as  we  are  in  it, 
can  never  lose  its  claims  upon  us,  as  the  sphere  of  our 
duty,  and  the  scene  of  our  training.  Here  we  have  our 
place  to  fill,  our  relations  to  sustain,  our  part  to  play. 


250  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHHJPPIANS. 

our  ministries  to  perform.  In  all  these  ways  of  it  we 
have  some  good  to  do,  of  lower  or  loftier  kinds  ;  in  all, 
we  have  many  lessons  to  learn,  which  crowd  upon  us 
to  the  last ;  through  all,  we  have  to  carry  the  faith  of 
the  unseen  Kingdom  and  the  unseen  Lord;  and  in  all 
these  aspects  of  earthly  life,  if  God  gives  us  any  cheer- 
ing experience  of  earthly  brightness,  surely  it  is  to  be 
taken  most  thankfully.  It  is  a  poor  way  of  construing 
the  conformity  to  Christ's  death,  to  renounce  interest 
in  the  life  of  which  we  are  a  part,  and  the  world  which 
is  the  scene  of  it.  But  the  interest  should  fasten  more 
intently  on  the  things  which  interest  our  Lord,  and 
eagerness  of  spirit  about  earthly  good  for  ourselves 
must  give  place  and  subside. 

And  yet,  when  one  thinks  of  the  beauty  and  sweet- 
ness of  much  that  pertains  to  our  earthly  existence, 
and  of  the  goodness  of  God  in  material  or  temporal 
gifts,  and  of  the  thankfulness  with  which  Christian 
hearts  are  to  take  these  when  they  are  given,  and  are 
to  walk  with  God  in  the  use  of  them,  one  feels  the  risk 
of  involving  oneself  here  in  extravagance  or  in  contra- 
diction. We  are  not  going  to  maintain  that  the  Apostle 
would  shut  himself  out,  or  us,  from  interest  or  delight 
in  the  innocent  beauty  or  gladness  of  the  earth.  But 
yet,  is  it  not  true  that  we  are  all  passing  on  to  death, 
and  in  death  are  to  be  parted  from  all  this  ?  Is  it  not 
true  that  as  Christians  we  consent  to  dying ;  we  count 
it  the  good  discipline  of  Christ's  people  that  they  should 
die,  and  pass  so  into  the  better  life  ?     Is  it  not   true 


iii.  lo,  II.]   RESURRECTION  LIFE  AND  DAILY  DYING.    251 

that  our  lift!  as  Christians  should  train  us  to  maintain 
this  mind  deliberately  and  habitually,  calmly  and 
gladly  ?  For  indeed  this  life,  at  its  purest  and  best, 
still  offers  to  us  a  vision  of  good  that  is  apt  to  steal  our 
hearts  away  from  the  supreme  good,  the  best  and 
highest.  Now  that  best  and  highest  rises  before  us,  as 
practically  to  be  made  ours,  in  the  resurrection. 

Meanwhile,  it  is  well,  no  doubt,  that  we  should 
cherish  a  frank  and  thankful  gladness  in  all  earthly 
good  and  earthly  beauty  that  can  be  taken  as  fi'om  the 
Father's  hand.  Yet  there  should  grow  upon  us  an 
inward  consent,  strengthening  as  the  days  go  by, 
that  this  shall  not  endure ;  that  it  shall  not  be  our 
permanent  possession ;  that  it  shall  be  loosely  held, 
as  ere  long  to  be  parted  from.  Such  a  mind  should 
grow,  not  because  our  hearts  are  cold  to  the  present 
country  of  our  being,  but  because  they  are  warming 
towards  a  better  country.  These  earthly  things  are 
good,  but  they  are  not  ours  ;  we  have  only  a  lease 
of  them,  terminable  at  any  time.  Who  shall  bring 
us  to  that  which  is,  and  shall  eternally  be,  our  very 
own  ? 

So  Christ  our  Master  passed  through  life,  with  an 
open  eye  and  heart  for  the  fair  and  the  lovable  around 
Him,  for  flowers  and  little  children,  and  for  what  was 
estimable  or  attractive  in  men,  even  in  a  natural  way. 
Surely  all  was  dear  to  Him  on  which  He  could  see  the 
trace  of  the  Creator's  holy  hands.  Yet  He  passed  on 
and  passed  by,  going  forward  to  death  and  consenting 


252  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PIIILIPPIANS. 


to  die,  His  face  set  steadfastly  to  a  joy  before  Him 
which  could  not  be  realised  by  lingering  here. 

Now  let  this  be  especially  observed,  that  while  we 
may  here  recognise  a  practical  lesson  to  be  learned,  the 
wisest  of  us  may  also  recognise  it  as  a  lesson  we  could 
not  undertake  to  teach  to  ourselves.  To  oppose  sin, 
when  conscience  and  God's  word  warn  us  of  its 
presence,  is  at  least  something  definite  and  plain.  But 
how  to  take  the  right  attitude  and  bear  the  right  mind 
towards  this  various,  manifold,  engrossing,  wonderful 
human  life,  as  it  unfolds  for  us  here — how  shall  that  be 
done  ?  Some  have  tried  to  answer  by  amputating  large 
sections  of  human  experience.  But  that  is  not  the  way. 
For,  indeed,  it  is  in  human  life  itself— in  this  present, 
and,  for  the  present,  the  only  form  of  our  existence — that 
we  must  take  the  right  view  of  human  life,  and  form 
the  right  mind  about  it.  Moreover,  our  conditions  are 
varying  continually,  from  the  state  of  the  little  child, 
open  to  every  influence  that  strikes  the  sense,  to  the 
state  of  the  old  man,  whom  age  is  shutting  up  in  a 
crippled  and  stunted  existence.  The  just  equipoise  of 
soul  for  one  stage  of  life,  could  it  be  attained,  would  not 
be  the  just  equipoise  for  the  next. 

The  truth  is,  there  is  no  ready-made  theory  here  for 
any  of  us.  All  our  attainments  in  it  are  tentative  and 
provisional ;  which  does  not  hinder,  however,  that  they 
may  be  very  real.  When  we  believe  in  Christ  we 
become  aware  that  there  is  a  lesson  in  this  department 
to  be  learned,  and  we  become  willing,  in  a  measure,  to 


iii.  lo,  II.]  RESURRECTION  LIFE  AND  DAILY  DYING.    253 

learn  it.     But  we  should  learn  little  were  it  not  for  three 
great  teachers  that  take  us  in  hand. 

The  first  is  the  inevitable  conflict  with  sin  and 
temptation.  The  Christian  must,  at  all  events,  strive 
against  known  sin,  and  he  must  hold  himself  ready  to 
resist  the  onset  of  temptation,  watching  and  praying. 
In  this  discipline  he  soon  learns  how  sin  is  entangled 
for  him  with  much  that  in  other  respects  seems  desirable 
or  good  ;  he  learns  that  in  rejecting  sin  he  must  forgo 
some  things  which  on  other  accounts  he  gladly  would 
embrace.  It  is  often  a  painful  conflict  through  which 
he  has  to  pass.  Now  in  seeking  help  from  his  Lord, 
and  entering  into  the  fellowship  of  the  mind  of  Christ, 
he  is  not  only  strengthened  to  repel  the  sin,  but  also 
learns  to  submit  willingly  to  any  impoverishment  or 
abridgement  of  earthly  life  which  the  conflict  entails. 
He  is  taught  in  practice,  now  in  one  form,  now  in 
another,  to  count  all  things  but  loss — to  lower  the 
overweening  estimate  of  earthly  treasure  and  let  it  go, 
dying  to  it  with  his  dying  Lord. 

Then,  besides,  there  is  the  discipline  of  suffering. 
Sorrow,  indeed,  is  not  peculiar  to  Christians.  Of  it,  all 
are  partakers.  But  Christian  endurance  is  part  of  a 
fellowship  with  Christ,  in  which  we  learn  of  Ilim.  In 
the  warm  air  of  prosperity  a  hot  mist  rises  round  the 
soul,  that  hides  from  view  the  great  realities,  and  that 
deceives  and  misleads  us  with  its  vain  mirage.  But  in 
suffering,  taken  in  Christ's  way  and  in  fellowship  with 
Him,  in  the  pain   of  disappointment  and   of  loss,  and 


254  ^^^^  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


especially  in  the  exercise  of  submission,  we  are  taught 
feelingly  where  our  true  treasure  is ;  and  we  are  trained 
to  consent  to  separations  and  privations,  for  the  sake 
of  Christ,  and  under  the  influence  of  the  love  of 
Christ. 

And,  lastly,  the  growth  of  Christian  experience  and 
Christian    character    deepens    our  impressions    of  the 
worth  of  Christ's  salvation,  and  gives  more  body  and 
more  ardour  to  Christian  hope.     As  that  world  with  its 
perfect  good  draws   the  beHever,  as  it  becomes  more 
visible  to  faith  and  more  attractive,  his  grasp  of  this 
world  becomes,  perhaps,  not  less  kindly,  but  it  becomes 
less  tenacious.     Knowledge,  such  as  the  schools  of  earth 
afford,  we  still  feel  to  be  desirable   and   good.     Love, 
under  the  conditions  which  earth  supplies  for  its  exer- 
cise,  we    still    feel   to   be   very  dear.      The   activities 
which  call  out  courage  and  resource,  we  still  feel   to 
be  interesting  and  worthy.     Yet  knowledge  proves  to 
be  but  in  part.     And  love,  if  it  does  not  die,  needs  for 
its    health    and    security    a    purer    air.       And    in   the 
problems  of  active  life  failure  still  mingles  with  success. 
But  the  love  of  God  which  is   in  Jesus  Christ  grows 
in  worth  and  power ;  so  that,  in  new  applications  of  the 
principle,  we  learn  afresh  to  "  count  all  things  but  loss 
for  the  excellency  of  the  knowledge  of  Christ." 

In  a  word,  then,  that  we  may  grow  into  the  mind 
of  Christ,  sufferings  and  self-denials  are  appointed  to 
come  into  experience.  He  sets  them  for  us  ;  we  should 
not  wisely  set  them  for  ourselves.     They  come  in  the 


iii.  10,  II.]    RESURRECTION  LIFE  AND  DAILY  DYING.    255 


conflict  with  sin  or  in  the  ordinary  discipHne  of  life. 
Either  way  they  become  for  behevers  the  fellowship  of 
Christ's  sufferings ;  for  they  are  taken  in  Christ's  way, 
under  His  eye,  endured  in  the  strength  of  His  truth  and 
grace  and  salvation.  So  believers  become  more  con- 
formable to  His  death.  Hence  this  discipline  of  trial 
is  indispensable  to  all  disciples. 

Some  such  view  of  the  ends  of  Christ  in  regard  to 
separation  from  sin  and  disengagement  from  the  life 
which  is  doomed  to  die,  we  suppose  to  have  been 
before  Paul's  mind.  He  had  come  to  Christ  for  life, 
abundant  and  victorious,  such  as  should  be  answer- 
able to  the  power  of  Christ's  resurrection.  But  he 
saw  that  such  life  must  fulfil  itself  in  a  certain  dying, 
made  good  in  a  fellowship  of  Christ's  sufferings  ;  and 
it  must  find  its  completeness  and  its  peace  beyond 
death,  in  the  resurrection  of  the  dead.  Did  he  flinch 
or  shrink  from  this  ?  No  :  he  longed  to  have  it  all 
perfectly  accomplished.  His  knowledge  of  Christ  was 
to  be  not  only  in  the  power  of  His  resurrection,  but  in 
the  fellowship  of  His  sufferings,  being  made  conform- 
able to  His  death. 

Whatever  mistakes  have  been  made  by  followers  of 
the  ascetic  life,  it  is  a  mistake  on  the  other  side  to 
neglect  this  element'  of  Christianity.  He  who  is  not 
self-denied,  and  that  cheerfully,  to  the  danger  and 
seduction  of  lawful  things,  is  one  who  has  not  his  loins 
girt  nor  his  lamp  burning. 

It  is  worth    our    while  to  mark   the    thoroughgoing 


256  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

sincerity  of  the  Apostle's  Christianity.  Not  merely  did 
he  in  general  embrace  Christ  and  salvation  :  but  with 
the  utmost  cordiality  he  embraced  the  method  of  Christ ; 
he  strove  after  fellowship  with  Christ's  mind  in  living, 
and  also  in  dying ;  he  did  so,  though  the  fellowship 
included  not  only  the  power  of  His  resurrection,  but  the 
fellowship  of  His  sufferings.  He  longed  to  have  it  all 
fulfilled  in  his  own  case.  So  he  strove  toward  the 
resurrection  of  the  dead. 

In  parting  from  these  great  Christian  thoughts  we 
may  note  how  fitly  the  power  of  Christ's  resurrection 
takes  precedence  of  the  fellowship  of  His  sufferings  and 
the  being  made  conformable  to  His  death.  Some  have 
thought  that,  as  death  comes  before  resurrection,  the 
order  of  the  clauses  might  have  been  inverted.  But  it 
is  only  through  the  precedent  virtue  of  Christ's  resur- 
rection that  such  a  history  is  achieved,  either  in  Paul 
or  in  any  of  us.  We  must  be  partakers  of  life  in  the 
power  of  Christ's  resurrection,  if  we  are  to  carry  through 
the  fellowship  with  the  suffering  and  the  death. 


anUSTIAN  LIFE  A   RACE. 


^si 


17 


"Not  that  I  have  already  obtained,  or  am  already  made  perfect : 
but  I  press  on,  if  so  be  that  I  may  apprehend  that  for  which  also  I 
was  apprehended  by  Christ  Jesus.  Brethren,  I  count  not  myself  j'et 
to  have  apprehended  :  but  one  thing  I  do,  forgetting  the  things  which 
arc  behind,  and  stretching  forward  to  the  things  which  are  before,  I 
press  on  toward  the  goal  unto  the  prize  of  the  high  calling  of  God  in 
Christ  Jesus,  Let  us  therefore,  as  many  as  be  perfect,  be  thus  minded  : 
and  if  in  anything  ye  are  otherwise  minded,  even  this  shall  God 
reveal  unto  you  :  only,  whereunto  we  have  already  attained,  by  that 
same  rule  let  us  walk. 

"  Brethren,  be  ye  imitators  together  of  me,  and  mark  them  which 
so  walk  even  as  ye  have  us  for  an  ensample." — Phil.  iii.  12-17  (R.V.). 


CHAPTER   XIV. 

CHRISTIAN  LIFE  A    RACE. 

T   /"ARIOUS  passages  in  this  Epistle  suggest  that  the 

*       Apostle's   Philippian    friends   or   some    of   them 

were  relaxing  in  diligence  ;  they  were  failing  perhaps 

to  lay  to  heart  the  need  of  progress,  less  sensitive  than 

they  ought  to  be   to  the  impulse  of  Christianity  as  a 

religion   of  effort  and  expectancy.     Some  of  them,   it 

might  be,  were  inclined  to  think  of  themselves  as  now 

pretty  well  initiated  into  the  new  religion,  and  as  pretty 

thorough  adepts  in  its  teaching  and  its  practice  ;  entitled 

therefore  to  sit  down  and  look   round  with  a  certain 

satisfaction  and  complacency.    If  it  were  so,  the  tendency 

to   division    would    be    accounted    for.     Arrogance    in 

Christians  is  a  sure  preliminary  to  heats  and  disput- 

ings.     At  all  events,  however  it  might  be  at  Philippi, 

an  insidious  complacency   in  little  improvements  and 

small  attainments  is   not  unknown  among  Christians. 

It  is,  one  may  fear,  a  common   impression   among  us 

that  we  are  fair  average  Christians, — a  feeling  perhaps 

not  so  cherished  as    to    make    us    boast,    but   yet   so 

cherished  as  to  make  us  feel  content.     And,  alas  !  the 

259 


26o  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

very  meaning  of  Christianity  was  to  inspire  us  with  a 
spirit  that  would  refuse  so  to  be  contented. 

Some  feeHng  of  this  kind  may  have  led  the  Apostle 
to  lay  stress  on  the  onward  energising  character  of 
Christianity  as  he  knew  it.  This  was  the  manner  of 
his  regard  to  his  Lord.  At  the  foundation  of  his 
religion  there  was,  indeed,  the  faith  of  a  wonderful  gift 
of  righteousness  and  life.  That  gift  he  welcomed  and 
embraced.  But  it  wrought  in  him  eagerness  of  desire, 
and  intentness  of  purpose,  to  secure  and  have  all  that 
this  gift  implied.  It  stirred  him  to  activity  and  progress. 
His  was  not  the  Christianity  of  one  who  counts  himself 
to  have  already  obtained  all  into  possession,  nor  of  one 
who  finds  himself  landed  already  in  the  state  at  which 
the  Christian  promises  aim.  Rather  he  is  one  set  in 
full  view  of  a  great  result :  some  experience  of  the 
benefits  of  it  is  already  entering  into  his  history  ;  but  it 
is  yet  to  be  brought  to  pass  in  its  fulness  ;  and  that  must 
be  along  a  line  of  believing  endeavour,  Christ  working 
and  Paul  working,  Christ  faithful  with  Paul  faithful. 
"  I  follow  after,  if  that  I  may  lay  hold  and  extend  my 
grasp,  seeing  Christ  has  laid  hold  with  His  grasp  on 
me."  Christ  had  a  purpose,  and  has  mightily  inaugu- 
rated a  process  through  which  this  purpose  may  be 
achieved  in  the  history  of  Paul.  And  as  Christ  lays 
His  grasp  on  Paul,  behold  the  purpose  of  Christ 
becomes  also  the  purpose  of  Paul,  and  Jie  now  throws 
himself  into  the  process  with  all  his  force,  to  apprehend 
that  for  the  sake  of  which  Christ  apprehended  him. 


iii.  12-17.J  CHRISTIAN  LIFE  A    RACE.  261 


Here  Paul  signalised  one  distinguishing  attribute  of 
genuine  Christianity  as  he  knew  it.  lie  did  not  yet 
count  himself  to  have  laid  complete  grasp  on  the  whole 
of  Christian  good.  In  a  very  important  practical  sense 
salvation  was  still  something  ahead  of  him,  as  to  the 
final,  secure,  complete  possession  ;  Christ  Himself  was 
an  object  still  before  him,  as  to  the  knowledge  and  the 
fellowship  for  which  he  longed.  But  one  thing  is  vital 
and  distinctive.  "  This  Saviour  with  His  salvation  holds 
me  so,  that  I  count  all  but  loss  for  Him.  He  holds  me 
so,  that  forgetting  all  that  lies  behind,  I  bend  myself  to 
the  race,  stretching  out  towards  the  goal  at  which  the 
prize  of  the  high  calling  of  God  in  Christ  is  won.  That 
is  my  Christianity."  He  who  had  suffered  loss  of  all 
for  Christ,  he  who  so  burned  with  desire  to  know  Him 
in  His  righteousness,  in  the  power  of  His  resurrection, 
in  the  fellowship  of  His  sufferings,  is  far  from  thinking 
he  has  reached  the  goal.  Because  the  knowledge  of 
Christ  is  so  great  a  thing  in  his  eyes,  therefore,  on  the 
one  hand,  all  he  has  attained  as  yet  seems  partial  and 
imperfect ;  but  for  the  same  reason,  on  the  other  hand, 
he  feels  the  great  attraction  by  which  all  his  powers  are 
drawn  into  the  endeavour  which  so  great  a  prize  shall 
crown. 

The  question  may  here  be  put  how  the  consistency 
of  the  gospel  can  be  made  out  if  we  are  called  to  rest 
and  rejoice  in  Christ,  and  if,  at  the  same  time,  we  find 
ourselves  committed  to  so  absorbing  a  struggle  for  a 
prize.     If  God  will  have  us,  it  may  be  said,  to  seek  and 


262  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHJPPIANS. 

Strive  that  we  may  obtain,  then  we  must  do  so  because 
it  is  His  will.  But  where  is  the  connection  of  things 
that  will  avert  inconsistency,  and  bring  out  a  reason- 
able continuity  of  principles,  between  the  call  to  rest 
on  Christ  for  full  salvation,  and  the  call  to  run  a  race, 
and  so  run  as  to  obtain  ?  For  answer  it  is  to  be  re- 
membered, in  the  first  place,  that  (as  commonly  happens 
in  matters  where  Hfe  and  its  activities  are  concerned) 
the  difficulty  concerns  only  the  adjustment  of  our 
theory  ;  it  begins  to  vanish  when  we  come  to  practice. 
When  we  are  in  vital  contact  with  the  spiritual  realities 
themselves,  we  find  both  elements  of  the  case  to  be 
true  for  us,  and  each  indispensable  to  the  truth  of  the 
other.  The  rest  of  faith  and  the  fight  of  faith  belong 
to  each  other.  But  not  to  dwell  on  so  general  a  con- 
sideration, two  lines  of  thought  may  be  suggested  to 
those  who  are  conscious  of  embarrassment  at  this  point. 
First,  let  it  be  considered  that  the  faith  of  a  Christian 
embraces  real  relations  with  the  living  God,  different 
from  anything  that  is  possible  to  unbelief.  Through 
Christ  we  believe  in  God.  Those  relations  are  con- 
ceived to  be  real  and  vital  from  the  first,  though  the 
perfect  experience  of  all  that  they  imply  belongs  to  the 
future.  Faith  means  that  from  the  outset  of  believing 
we  are  to  be  to  God,  and  God  is  to  be  to  us,  something 
different  from  what  the  flesh  perceives.  Christ  believed 
in  is  an  assurance  that  so  it  is  and  shall  be.  But  now, 
the  state  of  men  is  such,  as  long  as  they  have  to  carry 
on  a  life  of  faith  in  a  world  of  sense  and  sin,  that  this 


iii.  12-17.]  CHRISTIAN  LIFE  A    RACE.  263, 

faith  of  theirs  presently  meets  with  flat  contradiction. 
The  course  of  the  world  treats  it  all  as  null.  Sin  in 
their  own  hearts,  and  many  experiences  of  life,  seem  t  - 
negative  the  pretensions  and  the  claims  of  faith.  And 
strong  temptations  whisper  that  this  high  fellowship 
with  a  living  God  not  only  does  not  exist,  but  that  it 
is  not  desirable  that  it  should.  So  that  from  the  outset 
and  all  along,  faith,  if  it  is  not  content  to  be  a  mere 
dream,  if  it  will  count  for  a  reality,  must  contend  for 
its  life.  It  must  fight,  "praying  always  with  all 
prayer,"  to  make  good  its  ground,  and  to  hold  on  to  its 
Lord.  It  is  indeed  the  nature  of  faith  to  rest,  for  it  is 
a  trust ;  not  less  certainly  faith  is  under  necessity  to 
strive,  for  it  is  challenged  and  impeached. 

It  lies  therefore  in  the  very  nature  of  the  case  that, 
if  faith  is  in  earnest  in  embracing  real  and  progressive 
salvation,  it  must  find  itself  drawn  into  conflict  and 
effort  to  assert  the  reality  and  to  experience  the  pro- 
gress.    The  opposition  it  meets  with  ensures  this. 

On  the  other  hand,  it  is  the  nature  of  the  gospel  to 
set  men  free  for  active  service.  It  supplies  motives, 
therefore,  for  enterprise,  diligence,  and  fidelity ;  and 
it  provides  a  goal  towards  which  all  shall  tend.  So 
men  become  fellow-labourers  with  their  Lord.  And  if 
it  is  intelligible  that  the  Lord  should  exert  continual 
care  for  them,  it  ought  to  be  intelligible  also  that  they 
are  to  be  exercised  in  a  continual  care  for  Him  ;  care, 
that  is,  for  the  discharge  of  the  trust  which  they  hold 
from  Him. 


264  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


The  Apostle  dwells  on  all  this,  evidently  because  he 
felt  it  to  be  a  point  of  so  great  importance  in  practical 
Christianity.  In  this  world  the  right  Christian  is  the 
man  who  knows  well  he  has  not  attained,  but  who 
devotes  his  life  to  attaining.  Paul  brings  this  out  by 
means  of  tlie  image  of  a  race  for  a  prize,  such  as  might 
be  seen  in  the  public  games.  This  is  a  favourite 
illustration  with  him.  His  use  of  it  illustrates  the 
way  in  which  things  that  are  steeped  in  worldliness 
may  aid  us  in  apprehending  the  things  of  God's 
kingdom.  They  do  so,  because  they  involve  elements 
or  energies  of  man's  nature  that  are  good  as  far  as  they 
go.  As  the  Apostle  thought  of  the  racers,  prepared  by 
unsparing  discipline,  which  had  been  concentrated  on 
the  one  object ;  as  he  thought  of  the  determination 
with  which  the  eager  runners  started,  and  of  the  way 
in  which  every  thought  and  every  act  was  bent  upon 
the  one  purpose  of  success,  until  the  moment  when  the 
panting  runner  shot  past  the  goal,  it  stirred  him  with 
the  resolve  to  be  not  less  eager  in  his  race ;  and  it  made 
him  long  to  see  the  children  of  light  as  practical  and 
wise  as,  in  their  generation,  the  children  of  this  world  are. 

As  usual  in  the  case  of  illustrations,  this  one  will  not 
hold  in  all  points.  For  instance,  in  a  race  one  only 
wins,  and  all  the  rest  are  defeated  and  disappointed. 
This  is  not  so  in  the  Christian  race.  The  analogies  lie 
elsewhere.  In  order  to  run  well  the  runners  submit  to 
preparation  in  which  everything  is  done  to  bring  out 
their   utmost    energy    for  the   race.       When   the   race 


iii.  12-17.]  CHRISTIAN  LIFE  A   RACE.  265 


comes  each  competitor  may  possibly  win  :  in  order  to 
win  he  must  put  forth  his  utmost  powers  ;  he  must  do 
so  within  a  short  period  of  time  ;  and  during  that  time 
nothing  must  distract  him  from  the  one  aim  of  winning. 
I  le  does  this  for  a  benefit  embodied  in,  or  symboHsed 
by,  the  prize  which  rewards  and  commemorates  his 
victory.  These  are  the  points  in  which  the  races  of 
public  games  afford  lessons  for  the  Christian  race.  In 
the  former  the  fact  that  the  success  of  any  one  com- 
petitor deprives  the  others  of  the  prize  they  seek,  is  the 
circumstance  that  puts  intensity  into  the  whole  business, 
and  makes  a  real  race  of  it.  So  also  in  the  spiritual 
antitype  there  are  elements  which  make  the  race  most 
real,  though  they  are  elements  of  another  kind. 

The  prize  can  be  nothing  else  than  the  life  eternal 
(i  Tim.  vi.  12)  which  comes,  as  we  have  seen,  into  full 
possession  at  the  resurrection  of  the  dead.  He  whose 
favour  is  life  confers  it.  The  bestowment  of  it  is  con- 
ceived as  taking  place  with  gladness  and  with  honour- 
able approbation  :  "  Well  done,  good  and  faithful 
servant ;  enter  thou  into  the  joy  of  thy  Lord."  The 
prize  stands  in  strict  connection  with  the  perfecting  of 
the  believer  :  the  time  of  receiving  the  prize  is  also  the 
time  of  being  presented  faultless.  Neither  prize  nor 
perfectncss  is  attained  here  ;  neither  is  attained  unless 
sought  here ;  and  the  blessedness  bestowed  is  con- 
nected in  fact  and  measure  with  the  faith  and  diligence 
expended  on  the  race.  On  all  these  accounts  the  prize 
is  spoken  of  as  a  crown  :  a  crown  of  glory,  for  it  is  very 


266  THE  EPISTLE    TO   THE  PHHIPPIANS. 


honourable  ;  a  crown  of  life,  incorruptible,  that  fadeth 
not  away,  for  it  shall  never  wither  on  the  brow,  as  the 
wreaths  of  those  earthly  champions  did.  Now  to  run 
his  race  was  for  Paul  the  one  thing.  He  had  not  yet 
attained ;  he  could  not  sit  still  as  if  he  had  :  it  was  his 
living  condition  that  he  must  run,  as  one  not  yet  thercy 
following  on  in  earnest  that  he  might  actually  have  the 
prize. 

Perhaps  some  one  may  regard  it  as  objectionable  to 
conceive  practical  Christianity  as  a  race  for  a  prize. 
This  seems,  it  may  be  said,  to  subordinate  the  present 
to  the  future,  this  world  to  the  other  world,  and,  in  par- 
ticular, virtue  to  happiness  ;  because  in  this  way  the 
efforts  of  goodness  here  are  conceived  only  as  a  means 
to  enjoyment  or  satisfaction  there.  We  reply  that  the 
prize  does  indeed  include  joy,  the  joy  of  the  Lord. 
But  it  includes,  first  of  all,  goodness,  consummate  in 
the  type  of  it  proper  to  the  individual ;  and  gladness 
is  present  no  otherwise  than  as  it  is  harmonised  with 
goodness,  being  indeed  her  proper  sister  and  companion.  , 
Besides,  the  elements  of  the  gladness  of  that  state 
come  in  as  the  expression  of  God's  love — a  love  both 
holy  and  wise.  Communion  with  that  love  is  the  true 
security  for  goodness.  It  is  equally  absurd  to  suppose, 
on  the  one  hand,  that  when  that  love  fills  the  heart  with 
its  unreserved  communication  there  can  fail  to  be  glad- 
ness ;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  to  suppose  that  fellowship 
with  it  can  be  other  than  the  proper  and  supreme  object 
of  a  creature's  aspiration. 


iii.  12-17.]  CHRISTIAN  LIFE  A   RACE.  267 


There  is  no  unworthiness  in  devoting  life  to  win  this 
prize  ;  for  it  is  a  state  of  victorious  well-being  and  well- 
doing. The  highest  goodness  of  all  intervening  stages 
is  to  aspire  to  that  highest  goodness  of  all.  Whatever 
we  may  do  or  be,  meanwhile,  is  best  attained  and  done 
as  it  confesses  its  own  shortcoming,  and  hopes  and 
longs  to  be  better  and  to  do  more. 

It  is  true  that  a  complete  gift  of  eternal  life  is  held 
out  to  us  in  Christ,  and  it  is  faith's  part  to  accept  that 
gift  and  to  rest  in  it.  But  yet  part  of  that  gift  itself 
is  an  emancipation  of  the  soul ;  in  virtue  of  this  the 
man  becomes  actively  responsive  to  the  high  calling, 
reiterates  his  fundamental  decision  all  along  the  detail 
of  mortal  life,  affirms  his  agreement  with  the  mind  and 
life  of  his  Lord,  approves  himself  faithful  and  devoted, 
and  runs  so  as  to  obtain.  All  this  is  in  the  idea  of 
the  gift  bestowed,  and  is  unfolded  in  the  experience  of 
the  gift  received.  So  the  prize  is  to  arise  to  us  as  the 
close  of  a  course  of  progressive  effort  tending  that 
way  :  the  reality  of  the  prize  corresponds  to  the  reality 
of  the  progress  ;  the  degree  of  it,  in  some  way,  to  the 
rate  of  that  progress.  The  progress  itself  is  made 
good,  as  we  have  said,  by  perpetually  re-affirming  the 
initial  choice  ;  doing  so  in  new  circumstances,  under 
new  lights,  with  a  new  sense  of  its  meaning,  against 
the  difficulties  implied  in  new  temptations  ;  yet  so  as 
ever,  in  the  main,  to  abide  by  the  beginning  of  our 
confidence.  With  all  this  let  it  be  remembered  that 
the  time  is  short ;  and  it  will  be  understood  that  the 


26S  THE  EPISTLE    TO   THE   PFHUPPIANS. 

Christian  life,  so  viewed,  assumes  the  character,  and 
may  well  exhibit  the  intensity  and  pressure,  of  a  race. 
How  far  short  men  fall  of  the  great  idea  of  such 
a  life — how  they  flinch  from  the  perfectness  of  this 
Christian  imperfection — need  not  be  enlarged  upon. 
But  if  any  life  is  wholly  untrue  to  this  ideal,  the 
Apostle  seemingly  could  not  count  it  Christian.  This 
one  thing  he  did,  he  bent  himself  to  t^e  race.  For  if 
the  ultimate  attainment  has  become  very  attractive,  if 
the  sense  of  present  disproportion  to  it  is  great,  and 
if,  in  Christ,  both  the  obligation  and  the  hopefulness 
of  reaching  the  perfect  good  have  become  imperatively 
plain,  what  can  a  man  do  but  run  ? 

Verses  15  and  16  state  the  use  which  the  Apostle 
desires  his  disciples  to  make  of  this  account  of  his  own 
views  and  feelings,  his  attitude  and  his  effort, — ''  As 
many  of  us  as  are  perfect." 

Since  the  Apostle  has  disclaimed  (ver.  12)  being 
already  perfected,  it  may  seem  strange  that  he  should 
now  say,  "As  many  of  us  as  are  perfect."  His  use 
of  language  in  other  places,  however,  warrants  the 
position  that  he  is  not  speaking  of  absolute  perfection, 
as  if  the  complete  result  of  the  Christian  calling  had 
been  attained.  Rather  he  is  thinking  of  ripe  practical 
insight  into  the  real  spirit  of  the  Christian  life — that  is 
to  say,  advanced  acquaintance,  by  experience,  with  the 
real  nature  of  the  Christian  life.  He  uses  this  word 
"perfect"    in  contrast  to    "babes"  or   "children"  in 


iii.  12.17.J  CHRISTIAN  LIFE  A    RACE.  269 

Christ.  These  last  are  persons  who  have  been  truly 
brought  to  Christ  ;  but  their  conceptions  and  their 
attainments  are  rudimentary.  They  have  not  attained  to 
large  insight  into  the  means  and  ends  of  the  Christian 
life,  nor  to  any  ripe  acquaintance  with  the  position  of 
a  Christian  man,  and  the  relation  he  holds  to  things 
around  him.  They  are  therefore  unready  to  face  the 
responsibilities  and  perform  the  duties  of  Christian 
manhood.  Hence  the  translators  of  the  Authorised 
Version,  in  some  passages,  render  the  same  word  so  as 
to  bring  out  this  sense  of  it.  So  I  Cor.  xiv.  20,  "  Be 
not  children  in  understanding:  howbeit  in  malice  be 
ye  children,  but  in  understanding  be  men "  (jeXaot), 
and  Heb.  v.  14,  **  Strong  meat  belongs  to  those  that 
are  oi  full  age'^  {TeXeicov). 

It  cannot  be  doubted,  however,  that  the  word  is 
used  here  with  a  certain  emphatic  significance  in 
reference  to  the  previous  disclaimer,  "  I  am  not  yet 
perfected."  In  the  Philippians,  or  in  some  of  them,  Paul 
apprehended  the  existence  of  a  self-satisfied  mood  of 
mind,  such  as  might  perhaps  be  warrantable  if  they 
were  now  perfect,  if  Christianity  had  brought  forth  all 
its  results  for  them,  but  on  no  other  terms.  In  con- 
trast to  this  he  had  set  before  them  the  intense  avidity 
with  which  he  himself  stretched  out  towards  attainment 
and  completeness  which  he  had  not  reached.  And 
now  he  teaches  them  that  to  be  thus  well  aware  how 
far  we  are  from  the  true  completeness,  to  be  thus 
reaching  out  to  it,  is  the  true  perfection  of  our  present 


270  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

State:  he  only  is  the  perfect  Christian  who  is  ''thus 
minded  " ;  who  knows  and  feels  how  much  remains  to 
be  attained,  and  gives  himself  up  to  the  effort  and  the 
race  under  that  inspiration.  It  is  as  if  he  said  :  Would 
you  approve  yourselves  to  be  believers,  advanced  and 
established ;  would  you  show  that  you  have  come  to  a 
larger  measure  of  just  views  and  just  feelings  about  the 
new  world  into  which  faith  has  brought  you ;  would 
you  have  the  character  of  men  well  acquainted  with 
your  Lord's  mind  about  you,  with  your  own  position  in 
relation  to  Him ;  in  short,  would  you  be  perfect,  fully 
under  the  influence  of  the  Christianity  you  profess  : 
— then  let  you  and  me  be  "  thus  minded " ;  let  us 
evince  the  lowly  sense  of  our  distance  from  the  goal, 
along  with  a  living  sense  of  the  magnificence  and 
urgency  of  the  motives  which  constrain  us  to  press 
on  to  it. 

For  is  there  such  a  thing  attainable  here  as  a 
Christian  perfectness,  a  ripe  fulness  of  the  Christian 
life,  which  exhibits  that  working  of  it,  in  its  various 
forces,  which  was  designed  for  this  stage  of  our  history? 
If  so,  what  must  it  be  ?  That  man  surely  is  the  perfect 
man  who  fully  apprehends  the  position  in  which  the 
gospel  places  him  here,  and  the  ends  it  sets  before  him, 
and  who  most  fully  admits  into  his  life  the  views  and 
considerations  which,  in  this  state  of  things,  the  gospel 
proposes.  Then,  he  must  be  a  man  penetrated  with  a 
sense  of  the  disproportion  between  his  attainment  and 
Christ's  ideal,  and  at  the  same  time  set  on  fire  with  the 


iii.  12-17.]  CHRISTIAN  LIFE  A   RACE.  271 

desire  and  hope  of  overcoming  it.  Has  a  man  ex- 
perienced many  gracious  dealings  at  his  Lord's  hands, 
has  he  made  attainments  by  grace,  has  he  come  to  a 
Christian  standing  that  may  be  called  full  age,  would 
he  be  what  all  this  would  seem  to  imply, — then  let  him 
take  heed  to  be  "  thus  minded."  Otherwise  he  is 
already  beginning  to  lose  what  he  seemed  to  have 
attained. 

It  is  not  so  surprising,  and  it  is  not  so  severely  to  be 
reprehended,  if  those  fail  in  this  point  who  are  but 
children  in  Christ.  When  the  glorious  things  of  the 
new  world  are  freshly  bursting  into  view,  when  the 
affections  of  the  child  of  God  are  in  their  early  exer- 
cise, when  sin  -for  the  present  seems  stricken  down, 
it  is  not  so  wonderful  if  men  suppose  danger  and 
difficulty  to  be  over.  Like  the  Corinthians,  "  now  they 
are  full,  now  they  are  rich,  now  they  have  reigned  as 
kings."  It  has  often  been  so ;  and  at  that  stage  it  may 
be  more  easily  pardoned.  One  may  say  of  it,  "  They 
will  learn  their  lesson  by-and-by  ;  they  will  soon  find 
out  that  in  the  life  of  a  Christian  all  is  not  triumph 
and  exultation."  But  it  concerns  those  who  have  got 
further  on,  and  it  is  expected  of  them,  that  they  should 
be  "thus  minded"  as  the  Apostle  Paul  was.  It  is  a 
more  serious  business  for  them  to  be  of  another  mind 
on  this  point,  than  for  those  who  are  only  children  in 
Christ.  It  tends  to  great  loss.  Are  we,  says  the 
Apostle,  come  to  a  point  at  which  we  may  be  thought 
to  be — may  hope  we  are — experienced  believers,  well 


272  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHIPPIANS. 

acquainted  now  with  the  salvation  and  the  service,  men 
in  Christ  ?  Then  as  we  would  ever  act  in  a  manner 
answerable,  at  this  stage,  to  the  gospel  and  to  our 
position  under  the  gospel,  let  us  be  thus  minded ;  for- 
getting that  which  is  behind,  reaching  forth  to  that 
which  is  before,  let  us  press  toward  the  mark.  For  at 
each  stage  of  progress  much  depends  on  the  way  in 
which  we  deal  with  the  position  now  attained,  with  the 
views  which  have  opened  to  us,  and  with  the  experiences 
that  have  been  acquired.  This  may  decide  whether  the 
stage  reached  shall  be  but  a  step  towards  something 
better  and  more  blessed,  or  whether  a  sad  blight  and 
declension  shall  set  in.  There  are  Christian  lives 
to-day  sadly  marred,  entangled  and  bewildered  so  that 
one  knows  not  what  to  make  of  them,  and  all  by  reason 
of  failure  to  be  ''  thus  minded." 

A  man  is  awakened  to  the  supreme  importance  of 
Divine  things.  At  the  outset  of  his  course,  for  years 
perhaps,  he  is  a  vigorous  and  growing  Christian.  So 
he  comes  to  a  large  measure  of  establishment :  he 
grows  into  knowledge  of  truth  and  duty.  But  after 
a  time  the  feeling  creeps  into  his  mind  that  matters 
are  now  less  urgent.  He  acts  rather  as  a  man  disposed 
to  keep  his  ground,  than  as  one  that  would  advance. 
Now  he  seems  to  himself  to  lose  ground  somewhat, 
now  to  awaken  a  little  and  recover  it,  and  on  those 
terms  he  is  fairly  well  contented.  All  this  while  it 
would  be  unjust  to  say  that  he  does  not  love  and  serve 
Christ.    But  time  passes  on  ;  life  draws  nearer  to  its 


in.  12- 1 7. J  CHRISTIAN  LIFE  A   RACE.  273 

close.  The  period  at  which  God's  afflictions  usuall}- 
multiply  has  arrived.  And  he  awakens  at  last  to 
see  how  much  of  his  life  has  been  lost ;  how  extensively, 
though  secretly,  decay  has  marred  his  attainments  and 
his  service;  and  how  little,  in  the  result,  of  that 
honourable  success  has  crowned  his  life  which  once 
seemed  fair  before  him. 

"  Let  us  be  thus  minded."  Let  Christians  be  ad- 
monished who  have  for  some  time  been  Christians, 
and  especially  those  who  are  passing  through  middle 
life,  or  from  middle  life  into  older  years.  There  is 
enchanted  ground  here,  in  passing  over  which  too  many 
of  Christ's  servants  go  to  sleep.  Leave  that  which  is 
behind. 

Let  us  be  thus  minded  :  but  this  proves  hard.  One 
may  see  it  in  a  general  way  to  be  most  reasonable,  but 
to  come  up  to  it  in  particulars  is  hard.  In  all  particular 
cases  we  are  tempted  to  be  otherwise  minded.  And  in 
many  particulars  we  find  it  very  difficult  to  judge  the 
manner  of  spirit  that  we  are  of.  Were  all  right  in  us, 
absolutely  right,  rectitude  of  disposition  and  of  moral 
action  would  be  in  a  manner  instinctive.  But  now  it 
is  not  so.  With  reference  to  many  aspects  of  our  life, 
it  is  very  difficult  to  bring  out  distinctly  to  our  own 
minds  how  the  attitude  that  becomes  us  is  to  be  attained 
and  maintained.  The  difficulty  is  real  ;  and  therefore 
a  promise  is  annexed.  "If  in  anything  ye  be  otherwise 
minded."  That  may  realise  itself  in  two  ways.  You 
may  be  distinctly  conscious  that  your  way  of  dealing 

18 


274  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


with  some  interests  which  enter  into  your  lives  is 
unsatisfactory,  is  below  your  calling  and  privilege  as  a 
Christian  ;  and  yet  you  may  find  it  hard  to  see  how 
you  are  to  rise  into  the  worthier  life.  It  is  like  a 
problem  which  you  cannot  solve.  Or,  again,  you  may 
fear  that  it  is  so ;  you  may  fear  that  if  things  were 
seen  in  the  true  light  it  would  turn  out  so.  But  you 
cannot  see  clearly ;  you  cannot  identify  the  faulty 
element,  far  less  amend  it.  Here  the  promise  meets 
you.  "  If  in  anything  ye  be  otherwise  minded,  God 
shall  reveal  even  this  unto  you."  Keep  your  face  in 
the  right  direction.  Be  honestly  set  on  the  attainment, 
and  the  way  will  open  up  to  you  as  you  go.  You  will 
see  the  path  opening  from  the  point  where  you  stand, 
into  life  that  throughout  is  akin  to  the  aspiration  and 
the  achievement  of  the  life  of  Paul. 

Paul  here  has  regard  to  a  distinction  which  theorists 
are  apt  to  overlook.  We  have  a  sufficient  objective 
rule  in  the  word  and  example  of  Christ.  This  may  be 
summarised  in  forms  easily  repeated,  and  a  man  may, 
in  that  respect,  know  all  that  need  be  said  as  to  what 
he  is  to  do  and  to  be.  But  in  morals  and  in  spiritual 
life  this  is  only  the  beginning  of  another  process — 
namely,  the  subjective  individual  entrance  into  the 
meaning  of  it  all  and  the  practical  appropriation  of  it. 
I  know  the  whole  of  duty  on  the  human  side :  I  am  to 
love  my  neighbour  as  myself.  It  is  most  essential  to 
know  it,  and  a  grand  thing  to  have  consented  to  make 
a  rule  of  it.     But,  says  one,  there  remains  the  difficulty 


iii.  12-17.]  CHRISTIAN  LIFE  A    RACE.  275 


of  doing  it  ?  Is  that  all  ?  I  reply.  There  is  another 
previous  difiiculty.  I  can  preach  a  sermon  on  loving 
my  neighbour  as  myself.  But  what  does  that  mean, 
for  me,  not  for  any  one  else,  but  for  myself,  on  a  given 
day  in  November,  at  half-past  one  in  the  afternoon, 
when  I  am  face  to  face  with  my  neighbour,  who  has 
his  merits,  and  also  his  defects,  being,  perhaps,  pro- 
voking and  encroaching,  with  whom  I  have  some 
business  to  arrange  ?  What  does  it  mean  then  and 
there  and  for  me  ?  Here  there  opens  the  whole 
question  of  the  subjective  insight  into  the  scope  and 
genius  of  the  rule  ;  in  which  problem  heart  and  mind 
must  work  together ;  and  commonly  there  has  to  be 
training,  experience,  growth,  in  order  to  the  expert  and 
just  discernment.  Short  of  that  there  may  be  honest 
effort,  blundering  most  likely,  but  honest,  and  lovingly 
accepted  through  Christ.  But  there  ought  to  be  growth 
on  this  subjective  side. 

Moreover,  when  progress  has  been  made  here  it 
imposes  responsibility.  Have  you  been  carried  for- 
ward to  such  and  such  degrees  of  this  subjective 
insight  ?  Then  this  ought  to  be  for  you  a  fruitful 
attainment.  Do  not  neglect  its  suggestions,  do  not 
prove  careless  and  untrue  to  insight  attained.  Whereto 
we  have  attained,  "  by  the  same  rule  let  us  walk," — or, 
as  we  may  render  it,  "  go  on  in  the  same  line."  So 
new  insight  and  new  achievement  shall  wait  upon  our 
steps. 

Generally,  if  their  Lord  had  carried  the  Philippians 


276  THE  EPISTLE    TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


forward  to  genuine  attainments  of  Christian  living,  then 
that  history  of  theirs  was  a  track  which  reached  further 
on.  It  was  not  a  blind  alley,  stopping  at  the  point 
now  reached.  It  had  had  a  meaning ;  there  was  some 
rationale  of  it ;  it  proceeded  on  principles  which  could 
be  understood,  for  they  had  been  put  in  practice  ;  and 
it  demanded  to  be  further  pursued.  There  is  a  con- 
tinuity in  the  work  of  grace.  There  is  a  rational 
development  of  spiritual  progress  in  the  case  of  each 
child  of  God.  What  God  means,  what  the  direction 
is  in  which  His  finger  beckons,  what  the  dispositions 
are  under  the  influence  of  which  His  call  is  complied 
with  and  obeyed, — these  are  things  which  have  been 
so  far  learned  in  that  course  of  lessons  and  conflicts, 
of  defeats  and  backslidings,  restorations  and  victories, 
which  has  brought  you  so  far.  Let  this  be  carried  out ; 
keep  on  in  the  same  road.  Whereto  you  have  attained, 
go  on  with  the  same. 

But  such  an  admonition  at  once  raises  a  question  ; 
the  question,  namely,  whether  we  are  at  any  stage  in 
the  pathway  of  Christian  attainment,  whether  there  is 
for  us  as  yet  any  history  of  a  Divine  life.  Among  those 
who  claim  part  in  Christ's  benefits  are  some  whom  the 
grace  of  God  has  never  taught  to  deny  ungodliness  and 
worldly  lusts,  and  to  live  soberly,  righteously,  and  godly; 
for  they  have  been  persistently  deaf  to  the  lesson. 
There  are  some  who  do  not  know  how  Christ  turns 
men  from  darkness  to  light,  and  from  the  power  of 
Satan  unto  God.     To  them  the  line  of  admonition  now 


iii.  12-17.J  CHRISTIAN   LIFE   A    RACE.  277 

in  hand  does  not  apply  :  to  exhort  them  to  "  walk  on 
in   the  satne "  would  be  to  perpetuate  for  them  a  sad 
mistake.      Their  course  has  been  dark  and  downward. 
Therefore  to  the  admonition  already  given,  the  Apostle 
adds  another.      "  Brethren,  be  followers  together  of  me, 
and  mark  (keep  sight  of  j  them  who  walk  so  as  ye  have  us 
for  an  example."     Do  not  mistake  the  whole  nature  of 
Christianity  ;  do  not  altogether  miss  the  path  in  which 
God's  children  go.      It  is  one  spirit  that  dwells  in  the 
Church  ;  let   not  your  walk  forsake  the   fellowship  of 
that   spirit.     Christians  are   not   bound  to  any  human 
authority :   Christ  is  their  Master.     They  must  some- 
times assert  their  independence,  even  with  respect  to 
the  maxims  and  manners  of  good  people.     Yet  there  is 
one  spirit  in  God's   true   Church,  and   there  is  in   the 
main  one  course  of  life  which  it   inspires.     God's  chil- 
dren have  not  been  mistaken  in  the   main   things.     In 
these,  to  forsake  the  spirit  and  the  way  of  Christ's  flock 
is  to  forsake  Christ. 


ENEMIES  OF  THE   CROSS 


279 


"  For  many  walk,  of  whom  I  told  you  ol'len,  and  now  tell  you  even 
weeping,  that  they  are  the  enemies  of  the  cross  of  Christ :  whose 
end  is  perdition,  whose  god  is  the  belly,  and  whose  glory  is  in  their 
shame,  who  mind  earthly  things." — Phil.  iii.  l8,  19  (R.V.). 


280 


CHAPTER   XV. 

ENEMIES   OF  THE   CROSS. 

^  I  ^IIE  New  Testament  writers,  and  not  least  the 
-•-  Apostle  Paul,  are  wont  to  bring  out  their  con- 
ception of  the  true  Christian  life  by  setting  it  vividly  in 
contrast  with  the  life  of  the  unspiritual  man.  They 
seem  to  say:  "  If  you  really  mean  to  say  No  to  the  one, 
and  Yes  to  the  other,  be  sincere  and  thorough  :  com- 
promises are  not  possible  here."  So  i  Tim.  vi.  lo: 
"The  love  of  money  is  the  root  of  all  evil  :  which  while 
some  coveted  after,  they  have  erred  from  the  faith,  and 
pierced  themselves  through  with  many  sorrows.  But 
thou,  O  man  of  God,"  etc.  Or  Jude  i8  :  "mockers, 
walking  after  their  own  ungodly  lusts.  These  are 
they  who  separate  themselves,  sensual,  having  not  the 
Spirit.  But,  ye  beloved,"  etc.  Here  in  like  manner  the 
course  of  worldliness  and  self-pleasing  life  is  sketched  in 
concrete  instances,  that  its  sin  and  shame  may  be  felt, 
and  that  by  contrast  the  true  calling  of  a  Christian  may 
be  discerned  and  may  be  impressed  on  the  disciples. 
It  may  be  taken  as  certain   that  the   Apostle  is  not 

speaking    of    mere    Jews    or    mere    heathen.       He    is 

281 


282  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

Speaking  of  professing  Christians,  whose  practical  life 
belied  their  profession.  In  general  they  are  enemies 
of  the  cross  of  Christ ;  that  is  the  first  thing  he  thinks 
fit  to  say  of  them.  And  here  it  may  be  asked  whether 
the  Apostle  has  in  view,  if  not  Jews,  yet  the  Judaising 
faction  about  which  he  had  already  said  strong  things 
in  the  beginning  of  this  chapter.  Some  have  thought 
so ;  and  it  must  be  owned  that  antagonism  to  the 
cross,  ignorance  of  its  virtue,  and  antipathy  to  its 
lessons,  is  exactly  what  the  Apostle  was  wont  to 
impute  to  those  Judaisers ;  as  may  be  seen  in  the 
Epistle  to  the  Galatians,  and  in  other  Pauline  writings. 
But  it  is  preferable,  as  has  been  already  indicated, 
to  take  it  that  the  Apostle  has  turned  from  the  par- 
ticular issue  with  those  Judaisers ;  and  having  been 
led  to  declare  emphatically  what  the  life  of  Chris- 
tianity was  in  his  own  experience  and  practice,  he 
now  sets  this  life  in  Christ  not  merely  against  the 
religion  of  the  Judaisers,  but  in  general  against  all 
religion  which,  assuming  the  name  of  Christ,  denied  the 
power  of  godliness ;  which  meddled  with  that  worthy 
name,  but  only  brought  reproach  upon  it.  It  is  quite 
possible  indeed  that  here  he  might  have  in  view  some 
of  the  Judaisers  also  ;  for  there  was  a  sensual  side 
of  popular  Judaism  which  might  be  represented  also 
among  the  Judaising  Christians.  But  it  is  more  likely 
that  the  Apostle's  eye  is  turning  mainly  to  another 
class  of  jfersons.  It  seems  that  in  the  early  Churches, 
especially  perhaps  at  the  time  when  the  later  Epistles 


iii.  18,  19.]  ENEMIES   OF  THE   CROSS.  •  283 


were  written,  a  recognisable  tendency  to  a  loose  and 
lawless  Christianity  was  finding  representatives.  Warn- 
ing against  these  was  needed  ;  and  they  embodied  a 
form  of  evil  which  might  serve  to  show  the  Philippians, 
as  in  a  mirror,  the  disaster  in  which  an  idle,  self-satisfied, 
vainglorious  Christianity  was  like  to  land  its  votaries. 

What  first  strikes  the  Apostle  about  them  is  that 
they  are  enemies  of  the  cross  of  Christ.  One  asks. 
Does  he  mean  enemies  of  the  doctrine  of  the  cross^  or 
of  its  practical  influence  and  efficiency  ?  The  two  are 
naturally  connected.  But  here  perhaps  the  latter  is  prin- 
cipally intended.  The  context,  especially  what  follows 
in  the  Apostle's  description,  seems  to  point  that  way. 

When  Christ's  cross  is  rightly  apprehended,  and 
when  the  place  it  claims  in  the  mind  has  been  cordially 
yielded,  it  becomes,  as  we  see  in  the  case  of  Paul  him- 
self, a  renovating  principle,  the  fountain  of  a  new  view 
and  a  new  course.  That  immense  sacrifice  for  our 
redemption  from  sin  decides  that  we  are  no  more  to 
live  the  rest  of  our  time  in  the  flesh  to  the  lusts  of  men 
(i  Peter  iv.  i).  And  that  patience  of  Christ  in  His 
lowly  love  to  God  and  man  under  all  trial,  sheds  its 
conclusive  light  upon  the  true  use  and  end  of  life,  the 
true  rule,  the  true  inspiration,  and  the  true  goal.  So 
regarded,  Christ's  cross  teaches  us  the  slender  worth, 
or  the  mere  worthlessness,  of  much  that  we  otherwise 
should  idolise  ;  on  the  other  hand,  it  assures  us  of  re- 
demption into  His  likeness,  as  a  prospect  to  be  realised 
in  the  renunciation  of  the  "  old  man  "  ;  and  it  embodies  an 


284  THE  EPISTLE    TO    THE   PHILIPPIANS. 


incomparable  wealth  of  motive  to  persuade  us  to  comply, 
for  we  find  ourselves  in  fellowship  with  Love  unspeakable. 
Under  this  influence  we  take  up  our  cross  ;  which  is 
substantially  the  same  as  renouncing   or   denying  our- 
selves   (Matt.  xvi.  24)  carried   practically  out.      It  is 
self-denial  for  Christ's  sake  and  after  Christ's  example, 
accepted  as  a  principle,  and  carried  out  in  the  forms  in 
which  God  calls  us  to  it.     This,  as  we  have  seen,  takes 
place  chiefly  in  our  consenting  to  bear  the  pain  involved 
in  separation  from  sin  and  from  the  life  of  worldliness, 
and  in  carrying  on  the  war  against  sin  and  against  the 
world.     It  includes  rejection  of  known  sin  ;   it  includes 
watchfulness  and  discipline  of  life  with  a  view  to  life's 
supreme  end  ;  and  so  it  includes  prudential  self-denial,  in 
avoiding  undue  excitement  and  over- absorbing  pleasure, 
because  experience  and  God's  word  tell  us  it  is  not  safe 
for  our  hearts  to  be  so  ''  overcharged  "  (Luke  xxi.  34). 
This  cross  in  many  of  its  applications  is  hard.     Yet  in 
all  its  genuine  applications  it  is  most  desirable  ;  for  in 
frankly  embracing  it  we  shall  find  our  interest   in   sal- 
vation, and  in  the  love  which  provides  it,  brought  home 
with  comfort  to  our  hearts  (i  Peter  iv.  14). 

It  seems,  then,  that  there  are  professing  Christians 
who  are  enemies  of  the  cross  of  Christ.  Not  that  it  is 
always  an  open  and  proclaimed  hostility  ;  though,  in- 
deed, in  the  case  of  those  whom  Paul  is  thinking  of,  it 
would  appear  to  have  revealed  itself  pretty  frankly. 
But  at  all  events  it  is  a  real  aversion  ;  they  would  have 
nothing  to  do  with  the  cross,  or  as  little  as  they  may. 


iii.  i8,  19.]  ENEMIES   OF  THE   CROSS.  285 


And  this  proves  that  the  very  meaning  of  salvation,  the 
very  end  of  Christ  as  a  Saviour,  is  the  object  of  their 
d'shke.  But  in  Christianity  the  place  of  the  cross  is 
central.  It  will  make  itself  felt  somehow.  Ilence 
those  wlio  decline  or  evade  it  find  it  difficult  to  do  so 
quietly  and  with  complacency.  Eventually  their  dislike 
is  apt  to  be  forced  into  bitter  manifestation.  They 
begin,  perhaps,  with  quiet  and  skilful  avoidance  ;  but 
eventually  they  become,  recognisably,  enemies  of  the 
cross,  and  their  religious  career  acquires  a  darker  and 
more  ominous  character. 

It  is,  however,  an  interesting  question,  What  draws 
to  Christianity  those  who  prove  to  be  enemies  of  the 
cross?  Nowadays  we  may  explain  the  adhesion  of 
many  such  persons  to  Christian  profession  by  referring 
to  family  and  social  influences.  But  we  can  hardly  set 
much  down  to  that  score  when  we  are  thinking  of  the 
days  of  Paul.  It  cannot  be  doubted  that  some  persons 
were  then  strongly  drawn  by  Christianity,  who  did  not 
prove  amenable  to  its  most  vital  influence.  And  that 
may  persuade  us  that  the  same  phenomenon  recurs  in 
all  ages  and  in  all  Churches.  For  different  minds  there 
are  different  influences  which  may  operate  in  this  way. 
Intellectual  interest  may  be  stirred  by  the  Christian 
teachings  ;  the  sense  of  truth  and  reality  may  be  ap- 
pealed to  by  much  in  the  Christian  view  of  men  and 
things  ;  there  may  be  a  genuine  satisfaction  in  having 
life  and  feelings  touched  and  tinged  with  the  devout 
emotions   which  breathe    in   Christian   worship ;  there 


286  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

may  be  a  veneration,  real  as  far  as  it  goes,  for  some 
features  of  Christian  character,  as  set  forth  in  Scripture 
and  embodied  in  individual  Christians ;  and,  not  to 
dwell  on  mere  particulars,  the  very  goodness  of  Christian 
truth  and  Hfe,  which  a  man  will  not  pay  the  cost  of 
appropriating  to  himself,  may  exert  a  strong  attraction, 
and  draw  a  man  to  live  upon  the  borders  of  it.  Nay, 
such  men  may  go  a  good  long  way  in  willingness  to  do 
and  bear  for  the  cause  they  have  espoused.  Men  have 
run  the  risk  of  loss  of  life  and  goods  for  Christianity, 
who  have  yet  been  shipwrecked  on  some  base  lust 
which  they  could  not  bring  themselves  to  resign.  And 
who  has  not  known  kindly,  serviceable  men,  hanging 
about  the  Churches  with  a  real  predilection  for  the 
suburban  life  of  Zion, — men  regarding  whom  it  made 
the  heart  sore  to  form  any  adverse  judgment,  and  yet 
men  whose  life  seemed  just  to  omit  the  cross  of  Christ? 

In  the  case  of  those  whom  Paul  thinks  of  there  was 
no  room  for  doubt  as  to  the  real  nature  of  the  case ; 
and  therefore  the  Apostle  cannot  too  emphatically  bring 
it  out.  He  puts  first  the  most  startling  view  of  it. 
Their  end  is  destruction.  Not  salvation,  but  destruc- 
tion is  before  them,  although  they  name  the  name  of 
Christ.  Destruction  is  the  port  they  are  sailing  for:  that 
is  the  tendency  of  their  whole  career.  Their  place  must 
be  at  last  with  those  on  whom  the  day  of  the  Lord  brings 
sudden  destruction,  so  that  they  shall  not  escape.  Alas 
for  the  Christians  whose  end  is  destruction  ! 

"  Their  god  is  their  belly."     Their  life  was  sensual. 


iii.  1 8,  19.]  ENEMIES   OE  THE  CROSS,  287 


Most  likely,  judging  from  the  tone  of  expression,  they 
were  men  of  coarse  and  unblushing  indulgence.  If  so, 
they  were  only  the  more  outstanding  representatives  of 
the  sensual  life.  The  things  which  delight  the  senses 
were  for  them  the  main  things,  and  ruled  them.  They 
might  have  intellectual  and  aesthetic  interests,  they 
might  own  family  and  social  connections,  they  certainly 
did  attach  importance  to  some  religious  views  and  some 
religious  ties ;  but  the  main  object  of  their  life  was  to 
seek  rest  and  content  for  those  desires  which  ma}'  have 
rest  apart  from  any  higher  exercise  or  any  higher  portion. 
Their  life  was  ruled  and  guided  by  its  lower  and  sensual 
side.  So  their  belly  was  their  god.  Yet  they  claimed 
a  place  in  the  Christian  fellowship,  in  which  Christ  has 
revealed  God,  and  has  opened  the  way  to  God,  and  brings 
us  to  God.  But  their  thoughts  ran,  and  their  plans 
tended,  and  their  life  found  its  explanation,  bcllyivards. 
This  was  their  god.  Their  trust  and  their  desire  were 
placed  in  the  things  which  the  flesh  appreciates.  These 
they  served,  and  of  these  the}'  took  on  the  likeness. 
They  served  not  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  but  their  own 
belly.  One  cannot  think  of  it,  without  grave  questions 
as  to  the  direction  in  which  life  preponderates.  That 
would  seem  to  indicate  our  god.  One  does  not 
severely  judge  "  good  living."  And  yet  what  may 
"good  living  "  denote  in  the  case  of  many  a  professing 
Christian  ?  In  what  direction  do  we  find  the  tides  of 
secret  and  unrestrained  thought  setting  ? 

And  they  glory  in  their  shame.     In  this  Epistle  and 


288  THE  EPISTLE    TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


elsewhere,  one  sees  the  importance  attached  by  the 
Apostle  to  that  which  a  man  glories  in,  as  marking  his 
character.  For  himself,  Paul  gloried  in  the  cross  of 
Christ:  he  counted  all  things  but  loss  for  the  know- 
ledge of  Christ.  And  these  men  also  were,  or 
claimed  to  be,  in  Christ's  Church,  in  which  we  are 
taught  to  rate  things  at  their  true  value  and  to 
measure  them  by  the  authentic  standard.  But  they 
gloried  in  their  shame.  What  they  valued  them- 
selves upon ;  what  they  inwardly,  at  least,  rejoiced 
in,  and  applauded  themselves  for ;  what  they  would, 
perhaps,  have  most  cheerfully  dwelt  upon  in  congenial 
company,  were  things  of  which  they  had  every  reason 
to  be  ashamed — no  doubt,  the  resources  they  had 
gathered  for  the  worship  of  this  god  of  theirs,  and  the 
success  they  had  had  in  it.  For  example,  such  men 
would  inwardly  congratulate  themselves  on  the  measure 
in  which  they  were  able  to  attain  the  kind  of  satisfaction 
at  which  they  aimed.  They  gloried  in  the  degree  in 
which  they  succeeded  in  bringing  about  a  perfect 
accommodation  between  themselves  and  the  objects 
which  sense  alone  appreciates,  and  in  producing  a 
harmonious  and  balanced  life,  set  on  that  key.  Really, 
it  should  have  been  to  them  a  cause  of  grief  and  shame 
to  find  themselves  succeeding  here,  and  failing  in  attain- 
ing a  right  relation  to  Christ  and  to  the  things  of 
God's  kingdom,  to  righteousness,  godliness,  faith,  love, 
patience,  meekness.  So  they  gloried  in  their  shame. 
This  was  seen  in  their  lives.     Alas,  is  there  no  reason 


iii.  i8,  19.]  ENEMIES   OF   THE   CROSS.  289 


to  fear  that  when  the  thoughts  of  all  hearts  are  revealed, 
too  many  whose  lives  are  subject  to  no  obvious  re- 
proach shall  be  found  to  have  lived  an  inward  life  of 
evil  thought,  of  base  desire,  of  coarse  and  low  imagina- 
tion, that  can  only  rank  in  the  same  class  with  these — 
men  whose  whole  inward  life  gravitates,  and  gravitates 
unchecked,  towards  vanity  and  lust  ? 

In  a  word,  their  character  is  summed  up  in  this,  that 
they  mind  earthly  things.  That  is  the  region  in  which 
their  minds  are  conversant  and  to  which  they  have 
regard.  The  higher  world  of  truths  and  forces  and 
objects  which  Christ  reveals  is  for  them  inoperative. 
It  does  not  appeal  to  them,  it  does  not  awe  them,  it 
does  not  govern  them.  Their  minds  can  turn  in  this 
direction  on  particular  occasions,  or  with  a  view  to 
particular  discussions  ;  but  their  bent  lies  another  way. 
The  home  of  their  hearts,  the  treasure  which  they  seek, 
the  congenial  subjects  and  interests,  are  earthly. 

Since  this  whole  description  is  meant  to  carry  its 
lesson  by  suggestion  of  contrast,  the  clause  last  referred 
to  brings  powerfully  before  us  the  place  to  be  given  to 
the  spiritual  mind  in  our  conception  of  a  true  Christian 
life.  In  the  eighth  chapter  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans 
we  are  told  that  to  be  carnally  minded — or  the  minding 
of  the  flesh — is  death,  but  the  minding  of  the  spirit  is 
life  and  peace.  Care,  therefore,  is  to  be  taken  of  our 
thoughts  and  of  our  practical  judgments,  so  that  they 
may  be  according  to  the  spirit.  Effort  in  this  direction 
is  hopeful  effort,  because  we  believe  that  Christ  grants 

i9 


290  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


His  Spirit  to  hallow  those  regions  of  the  inward  man 
by  His  illuminating  and  purifying  presence.  It  cannot 
be  doubted  that  many  lives  that  were  capable  of  yielding 
much  good  fruit,  have  been  frittered  away  and  wasted 
through  indulged  vanity  of  thought.  Others,  that  are 
methodical  and  energetic  enough,  are  made  sterile  for 
Christian  ends  by  the  too  common  absence  or  the  too 
feeble  presence  of  the  spiritual  mind.  It  is  not  alto- 
gether direct  meditation  on  spiritual  objects  that  is  here 
to  be  enforced.  That  has  its  important  place ;  yet  cer- 
tainly, frank  converse  with  the  whole  range  of  human 
interests  is  legitimately  open  to  the  Christian  mind. 
What  seems  to  be  essential  is  that,  through  all,  the 
regard  to  the  supreme  interests  shall  continue ;  and 
that  the  manner  of  thinking  and  of  judging,  the  modes 
of  feeling  and  impression,  shall  keep  true  to  faith  and 
love  and  Christ.  The  subject  recurs  in  another  form 
at  the  eighth  verse  of  the  following  chapter. 

Probably,  as  was  said,  the  Apostle  is  speaking  of  a 
class  of  men  whose  faults  were  gross,  so  that  at  least 
an  Apostolic  eye  could  not  hesitate  to  read  the  verdict 
that  must  be  passed  upon  them.  But  then  we  must 
consider  that  his  object  in  doing  this  was  to  address 
a  warning  to  men  to  whom  he  imputed  no  such  gross 
failings  ;  concerning  whom,  indeed,  he  was  persuaded 
far  other  things,  even  things  that  accompany  salvation ; 
but  whom  he  knew  to  be  exposed  to  influences  tending 
in  the  same  direction,  and  whom  he  expected  to  see 
preserved  only  in  the  way  of  vigilance  and  diligence. 


iii.  18,  19.]  ENEMIES  OF  THE  CROSS.  291 

Outstanding  failures  in  Christian  profession  may  startle 
us  by  their  conspicuous  deformity ;  but  they  fail  to 
yield  us  their  full  lesson  unless  they  suggest  the  far 
finer  and  more  subtle  forms  in  which  the  same  evils 
may  enter  in,  to  mar  or  to  annul  what  seemed  to  be 
Christian  characters. 

The  protest  against  the  cross  is  still  maintained  even 
in  the  company  of  Christ's  professed  disciples.  But 
this  takes  place  most  commonly,  and  certainly  most 
persuasively,  without  advancing  any  plea  for  conduct 
grossly  offensive,  or  directly  inconsistent  with  Christian 
morals.  The  ''  enemies  of  the  cross "  retreat  into  a 
safer  region,  where  they  take  up  positions  more  capable 
of  defence.  *'  Why  have  a  cross  ?  "  they  say.  "  God 
has  not  made  us  spiritual  beings  only  :  men  ought  not 
to  attempt  to  live  as  if  they  were  pure  intelligences  or 
immaterial  spirits.  Also,  God  has  made  men  with  a 
design  that  they  should  be  happy ;  they  are  to  embrace 
and  use  the  elements  of  enjoyment  with  which  He  has 
so  richly  surrounded  them.  He  does  not  mean  us  to^ 
be  clouded  in  perpetual  gloom,  or  to  be  on  our  guard 
against  the  bright  and  cheering  influences  of  the  earth. 
He  has  made  all  things  beautiful  in  their  time  ;  and  He 
has  given  to  us  the  capacity  to  recognise  this  that  we 
may  rejoice  in  it.  Instead  of  scowling  on  the  beauty 
of  God's  works,  and  the  resources  for  enjoyment  they 
supply,  it  is  more  our  part  to  drink  in  by  every  sense, 
from  nature  and  from  art,  the  brightness,  and  gladness, 
and  music,  and  grace.     Let  us  seek,  as  much  as  may  be 


292  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


in  this  rough  world,  to  have  our  souls  attuned  to.  all 
things  sweet  and  fair." 

There  is  real  truth  here ;  for,  no  doubt,  it  lies  in  the 
destiny  of  man  to  bring  the  world  into  experience 
according  to  God's  order  :  if  this  is  ng:  to  be  done  in 
ways  of  sin  and  transgression,  it  is  yet  to  be  done  in 
right  ways  ;  and  in  doing  it,  man  is  designed  to  be 
gladdened  by  the  beauty  of  God's  handiwork  and  by 
the  wealth  of  His  beneficence.  And  yet  such  state- 
ments can  be  used  to  shelter  a  life  of  enmity  to  the 
cross,  and  they  are  often  employed  to  conceal  the  more 
momentous  half  of  the  truth.  As  long  as  the  things 
of  earth  can  become  materials  by  means  of  which  we 
may  be  tempted  to  fall  away  from  the  Holy  One,  and 
as  long  as  we,  being  fallen,  are  corruptly  disposed  to 
make  idols  of  them,  we  cannot  escape  the  obligation  to 
keep  our  hearts  with  diligence.  So  long,  also,  as  we 
live  in  a  world  in  which  men,  with  a  prevailing  consent, 
work  up  its  resources  into  a  system  which  shuts  God 
and  Christ  out ;  so  long  as  men  set  in  motion,  by  means 
of  those  resources,  a  stream  of  worldliness  by  which  we 
are  at  all  times  apt  to  be  whirled  away, — so  long  every 
man  whose  ear  and  heart  have  become  open  to  Christ 
will  find  that  as  to  the  things  of  earth  there  is  a  cross 
to  bear.  For  he  must  decide  whether  his  practical  life 
is  to  continue ,  to  accept  the  Christian  inspiration.  He 
must  make  his  choice  between  two  things,  whether  he 
will  principally  love  and  seek  a  right  adjustment  with 
things  above,   with  the   objects  and  influences  of  the 


iii.  i8,  19.]  ENEMIES   OF  THE   CROSS.  293 

Kingdom  of  God,  or  whether  he  will  principally  love 
and  seek  a  right,  or  at  least  a  comfortable  adjustment 
with  things  below.  He  must  make  this  choice  not  once 
only,  but  he  must  hold  himself  at  all  times  ready  to 
make  it  over  again,  or  to  maintain  it  in  reiterated  appli- 
cations of  it.  The  grace  of  Christ  who  died  and  rose 
again  is  his  resource  to  enable  him. 

Every  legitimate  element  of  human  experience,  of 
human  culture  and  attainment,  is,  doubtless  open  to  the 
Christian  man.  Only,  in  making  his  personal  selection 
among  them,  the  Christian  will  keep  sight  of  the  goal 
of  his  high  calling,  and  will  weigh  the  conditions  under 
which  he  himself  must  aim  at  it.  Still  every  such 
element  is  open  ;  and  all  legitimate  satisfaction  accruing 
to  men  from  such  sources  is  to  be  received  with  thank- 
fulness. Let  all  this  be  recognised.  But  Christianity, 
by  its  very  nature,  requires  us  to  recognise  also^  and 
in  a  due  proporlioUy  something  else.  It  requires  us  to 
recognise  the  evil  of  sin,   the  incomparable  worth  of 

Christ's  salvation.  Along  with  these  things,  duly 
regarded,  let  all  innocent  earthly  interests  take  their 

place.  But  if  we  are  conscious  that  as  yet  we  have 
very  incompletely  established  the  right  proportionate 
regard,  is  it  any  wonder  if  we  are  obliged  to  keep 
watch,  lest  the  treacherous  idolatry  of  things  seen  and 
temporal  should  carry  us  away, — obliged  to  accept  the 
cross?  We  are  obliged;  but  in  the  school  of  our 
Master  we  should  learn  to  do  this  thing  most  gladly, 
not  by  constraint,  but  of  a  ready  mind. 


294  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


The  ideal  life  on  earth  no  doubt  would  be  a  life  in 
which  all  was  perfectly  harmonised.  The  antagonism 
of  the  interests  would  have  passed  away.  Loyalty  and 
love  to  God's  kingdom  and  to  His  Son  would  embody 
themselves  in  all  human  exercise  and  attainment  as  in 
their  proper  vesture,  each  promoting  each,  working 
together  as  body  and  soul.  There  are  Christians  who 
have  gone  far  towards  this  attainment.  They  have 
been  so  mastered  by  the  mind  of  Christ,  that  while,  on 
the  one  hand,  they  habitually  seek  the  things  above, 
on  the  other  hand  there  is  little  trace  of  bondage  or  of 
timorousness  in  their  attitude  towards  the  bright  aspects 
of  earthly  experience.  Some  of  them  were  happily 
carried  in  early  days  into  so  clear  a  decision  for  the 
better  part ;  some  emerged  later,  after  conflict,  into  so 
bright  a  land  of  Beulah,  that  they  find  it  easy,  with 
Httle  conflict  and  little  fear,  to  take  frank  use  of  forms 
of  earthly  good  which  other  Christians  must  treat  with 
more  reserve. 

This  is  one  of  the  reasons  why  we  must  not  judge 
one  another  about  these  things ;  why  we  must  not  lay 
down  absolute  rules  about  them  ;  why  even  our  recom- 
mendations must  be  provisional  and  prudential  only. 
It  is  at  the  same  time  a  reason  for  the  more  fidelity  in 
each  of  us  towards  himself,  to  see  that  we  do  not  trifle 
with  the  great  trust  of  regulating  our  own  life.  It  is 
possible  to  give  to  God  and  to  Christ  a  recognition 
which  is  not  consciously  dishonest,  and  yet  to  fail  in 
admitting  any  deep  and   dominant  impression   of  the 


iii.  iS,  19.]  ENEMIES  OF  THE   CROSS.  295 


significance  of  Christ's  redemption  for  human  life.  So 
the  heart  is  yielded,  the  time  is  surrendered,  the 
strength  is  given  to  attractive  objects,  which  are  not 
indeed  essentially  immoral,  but  which  are  suffered  to 
usurp  the  heart,  and  to  estrange  the  man  from  Christ. 
Such  persons  prove  enemies  of  the  cross  of  Christ : 
they  mind  earthly  things. 

Since  the  earthly  side  of  human  life,  with  its  sorrow 
and  joy,  its  work  and  its  leisure,  is  legitimate  and 
inevitable,  questions  arise  about  adjusting  details. 
And  in  particular,  those  who  retain  a  relation  to 
Christianity  while  they  cherish  a  worldly  spirit,  take 
a  delight  in  raising  questions  as  to  the  forms  of  Hfe 
which  are,  or  are  not,  in  harmony  with  Christianity, 
and  as  to  whether  various  practices  and  indulgences 
are  to  be  vindicated  or  condemned.  It  is  a  satisfaction 
to  persons  of  this  sort  to  have  a  set  of  fixed  points  laid 
down,  with  respect  to  which,  if  they  conform,  they  may 
take  the  credit  of  doing  so,  and  if  they  rebel,  they  may 
have  the  comfort  of  feeling  that  the  case  is  argu- 
able :  as  indeed  these  are  often  matters  upon  which  one 
may  argue  for  ever.  Now  what  is  clearly  prohibited  or 
clearly  warranted  in  Scripture,  as  permanent  instruction 
for  the  Church,  must  be  maintained.  But  beyond  that 
point  it  is  often  wisest  to  refuse  to  give  any  specific 
answer  to  the  questions  so  raised.  The  true  answer 
is.  Are  you  a  follower  of  Christ  ?  Then  it  is  laid  on 
your  own  conscience,  at  your  own  responsibility,  to 
answer  such  questions  for  yourself.     No  one  can  come 


296  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

in  your  place.  You  must  decide,  and  you  have  a  right  to 
decide  for  yourself,  what  course  is,  for  you,  consistent 
with  loyalty  to  Christ  and  His  cross.  Only  it  may  be 
added,  that  the  very  spirit  in  which  one  puts  the  question 
may  be  significant.  One  who  minds  earthly  things  will 
put  the  question  in  one  way ;  one  whose  citizenship  is 
in  heaven,  in  another.  And  the  answer  which  you 
attain  will  be  according  to  the  question  you  have  put. 


OUR   CITY  AND   OUR   COMING  KING. 


297 


"  For  our  citizenship  is  in  heaven ;  from  whence  also  we  wait  for  a 
Saviour,  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ :  who  shall  fashion  anew  the  body  of 
our  humiliation,  that  it  may  be  conformed  to  the  body  of  His  glory, 
according  to  the  working  whereby  He  is  able  even  to  subject  all  things 
unto  Himself." — Phil.  iii.  20,  21  (R.V.). 


298 


CHAPTER   XVI. 

OUR  CITY  AND   OUR  COMING  KING. 

TO  live,  amid  the  things  of  earth,  and  in  constant 
converse  with  them,  a  Hfe  in  the  power  of 
Christ's  resurrection,  and  in  the  fellowship  of  His  suf- 
ferings, was  the  Apostle's  chosen  course ;  in  which 
he  would  have  the  Philippians  to  follow  him.  For  a 
moment  he  had  diverged  to  sketch,  for  warning,  the 
way  of  the  transgressors,  who  spend  their  lives  intent 
on  the  things  that  pass  away.  Now  he  brings  the 
argumer^t  to  a  close,  by  once  more  proclaiming  the 
glory  of  the  high  calling  in  Christ.  As  the  Christian 
faith  looks  backward  to  the  triumph  of  Christ's  resur- 
rection, and  to  the  meekness  of  His  suffering,  and 
receives  its  inspiration  from  them,  so  also  it  looks 
upward,  and  it  looks  forward.  It  is  even  now  in 
habitual  communion  with  the  world  on  high  ;  and  it 
reaches  on  towards  the  hope  of  the  Lord's  return. 

"  Our  citizenship  is  in  heaven."  The  word  here 
used  (comp.  i.  27)  means  the  constitution  or  manner 
of  life  of  a  state  or  city.     All  men  draw  much  from  the 

spirit   and  laws  of  the  commonwealth  to  which  they 

299 


3CX)  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


belong ;  and  in  antiquity  this  influence  was  even 
stronger  than  we  commonly  find  it  to  be  in  our 
day.  The  individual  was  conscious  of  himself  as  a 
member  of  his  own  city  or  state.  Its  life  enfolded  his. 
Its  institutions  set  for  him  the  conditions  under  which 
life  was  accepted  and  was  carried  on.  Its  laws  deter- 
mined for  him  his  duties  and  his  rights.  The  ancient 
and  customary  methods  of  the  society  developed  a 
common  spirit,  under  the  influence  of  which  each 
citizen  unfolded  his  own  personal  peculiarities.  When 
he  went  forth  elsewhere  he  felt  himself,  and  was  felt  to 
be,  a  stranger.  Now  in  the  heavenly  kingdom,  which 
had  claimed  them  and  had  opened  to  them  through 
Christ,  the  believers  had  found  their  own  city  ;  and 
finding  it,  had  become,  comparatively,  strangers  in 
every  other. 

A  way  of  thinking  and  acting  prevails  throughout 
the  world,  as  if  earth  and  its  interests  were  the  whole 
sphere  of  man  ;  and  being  pervaded  by  this  spirit,  the 
whole  world  may  be  said  to  be  a  commonwealth  with 
a  spirit  and  with  maxims  of  its  own.  We,  who  live  in 
it,  feel  it  natural  to  comply  with  the  drift  of  things  in 
this  respect,  and  difficult  to  stand  against  it ;  so  that 
separation  and  singularity  seem  unreasonable  and  hard. 
We  claim  for  our  lives  the  support  of  a  common  under- 
standing ;  we  yearn  for  the  comfort  of  a  system  of  things 
existing  round  us,  in  which  we  may  find  countenance.  It 
was  urged  against  the  Christians  of  the  early  ages  that 
their  religion  was  unsocial — it  broke  the  ties  by  which 


iii.  20,  21.]     OUR  CITY  AND  OUR  COMING  KING.  301 

men  held  together  ;  and  doubtless  many  a  Christian,  in 
hours  of  trial  and  depression,  felt  with  pain  that  much' 
in  Christian  life  offered  a  foundation  for  the  reproach. 
On  the  other  hand,  those  who',  like  the  enemies  of  the 
cross,  refer  their  lives  to  the  world's  standard,  rather 
than  to  Christ's,  have  at  least  this  comfort,  that  they 
have  a  tangible  city.      The  world  is  their  city  :  there- 
fore also  the  prince  of  it  is  their  king.     But  the  Apostle, 
for  himself  and  his  fellows,  sets  against  this  the  true 
city    or   state — with    its    more    original    and    ancient 
sanctions ;  with   its  more  authoritative  laws  ;  with  its 
far   more  pervading  and  mighty  spirit,   for  the  Spirit 
of  God  Himself  is  the  life  which  binds  it  all  together ; 
with  its  glorious  and  gracious   King.     This  common- 
wealth has  its  seat  in  heaven ;  for  there  it  reveals  its 
nature,  and  thence  its  power  descends.      We  recognise 
this  whenever  we  pray,  '*  Thy  will  be  done  in  earth  as 
it  is  in  heaven."     This,  says  the  Apostle,  is  our  citizen- 
ship.    7'he  archaism  of  the  Authorised  Version,  "  Our 
conversation  "  (that  is,  our  habitual  way  of  living)  "  is 
in  heaven,"  expresses  much  of  the  meaning ;  only  the 
*' conversation  "  is  referred,  by  the  phrase  employed  in 
the  text,  to  the  sanctions  under  which  it  proceeds,  the 
august  fellowship  by  which  it  is  sustained,  the  source 
of  influence  by  which  it  is  continually  vitalised.     Our 
state,  and  the  life  which  as  members  of  that  state  we 
claim  and  use,  is  celestial.      Its  life  and  strength,  its 
glory  and  victory,  are  in  heaven.     But  it  is  ours,  though 
we  are  here  on  earth. 


302  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

Therefore,  according  to  the  Apostle,  the  standard  of 
our  Hving,  and  its  sanctions,  and  its  way  of  thinking  and 
proceeding,  and,  in  a  word,  our  city,  with  its  interests 
and  its  objects,  being  in  heaven,  the  earnest  business  of 
our  Hfe  is  there.  We  have  to  do  with  earth  constantly 
and  in  ways  most  various ;  but,  as  Christians,  our  way 
of  having  to  do  with  the  earth  itself  is  heavenly,  and 
is  to  be  conversant  with  heaven.  What  we  mainly 
love  and  seek  is  in  heaven  ;  what  we  listen  most  to 
hear  is  the  voice  that  comes  from  heaven ;  what  we 
most  earnestly  speak  is  the  voice  we  send  to  heaven ; 
what  lies  next  our  heart  is  the  treasure  and  the  hope 
which  are  secure  in  heaven ;  what  we  are  most  intent 
upon  is  what  we  lay  up  in  heaven,  and  how  we  are 
getting  ready  for  heaven  ;  there  is  One  in  heaven  whom 
we  love  above  all  others ;  we  are  children  of  the 
kingdom  of  heaven  ;  it  is  our  country  and  our  home ; 
and  something  in  us  refuses  to  settle  on  those  things 
here  that  reject  the  stamp  of  heaven. 

Does  this  go  too  high  ?  Does  some  one  say,  "  Some- 
thing in  this  direction  attracts  me  and  I  reach  out  to  it, 
but  ah  !  how  feebly  "  ? — then  how  strongly  does  the 
principle  of  the  Apostle's  admonition  apply.  If  we  own 
that  this  city  rightfully  claims  us,  if  we  are  deeply 
conscious  of  shortcoming  in  our  response  to  that  claim, 
then  how  much  does  it  concern  us  to  allow  no  earthly 
thing  that  by  its  own  nature  drags  us  down  from  our 
citizenship  in  heaven. 

It  is  in  heaven.     Many  ways  it  might  be  shown  to  be 


iii.  20,  21.]     OUR   CITY  AND   OUR   COMING  KING.  303 


SO ;  but  it  is  enough  to  sum  up  all  in  this,  that  One  has 
His  presence  there,  who  is  the  Life  and  the  Lord  of  this 
city  of  ours,  caring  for  us,  calling  us  to  the  present 
fellowship  with  Him  that  is  attainable  in  a  life  of  faith, 
but  especially  (for  this  includes  all  the  rest)  whom  we 
look  for,  to  come  forth  from  heaven  for  us.  He  has 
done  wonders  already  to  set  up  for  us  the  grace  of  the 
kingdom  of  heaven,  and  He  has  brought  us  in  to  it  ;  He 
is  doing  much  for  us  daily  in  grace  and  in  providence, 
upholding  His  Church  on  earth  from  age  to  age ;  but 
this  "working"  is  proceeding  to  a  final  victory.  He 
is  "able  to  subject  all  things  to  Himself."  And  the 
emphatic  proof  of  it  which  awaits  all  believers,  is  that 
the  body  itself,  reconstituted  in  the  likeness  of  Christ's 
own,  shall  at  last  be  in  full  harmony  with  a  destiny  of 
immortal  purity  and  glory.  So  shall  the  manifestation 
of  His  power  and  grace  at  last  sweep  through  our  whole 
being,  within  and  without.  That  is  the  final  triumph 
of  salvation,  with  which  the  long  history  finds  all  its 
results  attained.  For  this  we  await  the  coming  of  the 
Saviour  from  heaven.  Well  therefore  may  we  say 
that  the  state  to  which  we  pertain,  and  the  life  which 
we  hold  as  members  of  that  state,  is  in  heaven. 

The  expectation  of  the  coming  of  Christ  out  of  the 
world  of  supreme  truth  and  purity,  where  God  is  known 
and  served  aright,  to  fulfil  all  His  promises, — this  is  the 
Church's  and  the  believer's  great  hope.  It  is  set  before 
us  in  the  New  Testament  as  a  motive  to  every  duty, 
as  giving  weight  to  every  warning,  as  determining  the 


304  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHIPPIANS. 


attitude  and  character  of  all  Christian  life.  In  par- 
ticular, we  cannot  deal  aright  with  any  of  the  earthly 
things  committed  to  us,  unless  we  deal  with  them  in 
the  light  of  Christ's  expected  coming.  This  expectation 
is  to  enter  into  the  heart  of  every  believer,  and  no  one 
is  warranted  to  overlook  or  make  light  of  it.  His 
coming,  His  appearing,  the  revelation  of  Him,  the 
revelation  of  His  glory,  the  coming  of  His  day,  and  so 
forth,  are  pressed  on  us  continually.  In  a  true  waiting 
for  the  day  of  Christ,  is  gathered  up  the  right  regard  to 
what  He  did  and  bore  when  He  came  first,  and  also  a 
right  regard  to  Him  as  He  is  now  the  pledge  and  the 
sustainer  of  our  soul's  life  :  the  one  and  the  other  are 
to  pass  onward  to  the  hope  of  His  appearing. 

Some  harm  has  been  done,  perhaps,  by  the  degree 
in  which  attention  has  been  concentrated  on  debatable 
points  about  the  time  of  the  Lord's  coming,  or  the  order 
of  events  in  relation  to  it ;  but  more  by  the  measure  in 
which  Christians  have  allowed  the  world's  unbelieving 
temper  to  affect  on  this  point  the  habit  of  their  own 
minds.  It  must  be  most  seriously  said  that  our  Lord 
Himself  expected  no  man  to  succeed  in  escaping  the 
corruption  of  the  world  and  enduring  to  the  end,  other- 
wise than  in  the  way  of  watching  for  his  Lord  (see 
Luke  xii.  35-40 — but  the  passages  are  too  numerous 
to  be  quoted). 

And  the  Apostle  lays  an  emphasis  on  the  character 
in  which  we  expect  Him.  The  word  "  Saviour  "  is  em- 
phatic.    We  look  for  a  Saviour ;  not  merely  One  who 


iii.  20,  21.]     OUR   CITY  AND   OUR   COMING  KING.  305 


saved  us  once,  but  One  who  brings  salvation  with  Him 
when  He  comes.  It  is  tlie  great  good,  in  its  complete- 
ness, that  the  Church  sees  coming  to  her  with  her 
Lord.  Now  she  has  the  faith  of  it, — and  with  the 
faith  an  earnest  and  foretaste, — but  then  salvation 
comes.  Therefore  the  coming  is  spoken  of  as  redemp- 
tion drawing  nigh,  as  the  time  of  the  redemption 
of  the  purchased  possession.  So  also  in  the  Epistle 
to  the  Galatians  the  end  of  Christ's  sacrifice  is  said  to 
be  to  "  deliver  us  from  this  present  evil  world." 

Doubtless  it  is  unwise  to  lay  down  extreme  positions 
as  to  the  spirit  in  which  we  are  to  deal  with  temporal 
things,  and  especially  with  their  winning  and  attractive 
aspects.  Christian  men,  at  peace  with  God,  should  not 
only  feel  spiritual  joy,  but  may  well  make  a  cheerful  use 
of  passing  mercies.  Yet  certainly  the  Christian's  hope 
is  to  be  saved  out  of  this  world,  and  out  of  life  as  he 
knows  it  here,  into  one  far  better — saved  out  of  the 
best  and  brightest  state  to  which  this  present  state  of 
things  can  bring  him.  The  Christian  spirit  is  giving 
way  in  that  man  who,  in  whatever  posture  of  his 
worldly  affairs,  does  not  feel  that  the  present  is  a  state 
entangled  with  evil,  including  much  darkness  and  much 
estrangement  from  the  soul's  true  rest.  He  ought  to 
be  minded  so  as  to  own  the  hope  of  being  saved 
out  of  it,  looking  and  hasting  to  the  coming  of  the 
Lord. 

If  we  lived  out  this  conviction  with  some  consistency, 
we  should  not  go  far  wrong  in  our  dealings  with  this 

20 


3o6  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

present  world.  But  probably  there  is  no  feature  in 
which  the  average  Christianity  of  to-day  varies  more 
from  that  of  the  early  Christians,  than  in  the  faint 
impressions,  and  the  faint  influence,  experienced  by 
most  modern  Christians  in  connection  with  the  expecta- 
tion of  the  Lord's  return. 

As  far  as  individual  life  goes,  the  position  of  men  in 

both  periods  is  much  the  same ;  it  is  so,  in  spite  of  all 

the  changes  that  have  taken  place.     Then,  as  now,  the 

mirage  of  life  tempted  men  to  dream  of  felicities  here, 

which  hindered  them  from  lifting  up  their  heads  to  a 

prospect  of  redemption.      But  now,   as   then,  counter 

influences  work ;    the   short   and    precarious   term    of 

human  life,  its  disappointments,  its  cares  and  sorrows, 

its   conflicts   and    falls,    conspire    to    teach    even    the 

most  reluctant  Christian  that' the  final  and  satisfying 

rest  is  not  to  be  found  here.     So  that  the  difference 

seems   to   arise  mainly  from   a   secret  failure  of  faith 

on   this  point,   due  to  the  impression   made  by  long 

ages  in  which  Christ  has  not  come.     '*  Where  is  the 

promise  of  His  coming  ?     All  things  continue  as  they 

were." 

This  may  suggest,  however,  that  influences  are  re- 
cognisable, tending  to  form,  in  modern  Christians,  a 
habit  of  thought  and  feeling  less  favourable  to  vivid 
expectation  of  Christ's  coming.  It  does  not  arise  so 
much  in  connection  with  individual  experience,  but  is 
rather  an  impression  drawn  from  history  and  from  the 
common  life  of  men.      In  the  days  of  Paul,  general 


iii.  20,  21.]       OUR   CITY  AND   OUR   COMING  KING.  307 


history    was   simply  discouraging    to    spiritual  minds. 
It  led  men  to  think  of  all  creation  groaning  together. 
Civilisation  certainly  had  made  advances ;  civil  govern- 
ment had  conferred  some  of  its  benefits  on  men ;  and, 
lately,  the   strong  hand  of  Rome,   however  heavily  it 
might  press,  had  averted  or  abridged  some  of  the  evils 
that  afflicted  nations.     Still,  on  the  whole,  darkness,  cor- 
ruption, and  social  wrong  continued  to  mark  the  scene, 
and    there  was  little  to  suggest  that  prolonged  eflfort 
might  gradually  work  improvement.     Rather  it  seemed 
that  a  rapid  dispensation  of  grace,  winning  its  way  by 
supernatural  energy,  might  well  lead  on  to  the  winding 
up  of  the  whole  scene,  sweeping  all  away  before  the 
advent  of  new  heavens  and  a  new  earth.     But,  for  us, 
nineteen  hundred   years  have  well-nigh  passed.     The 
Christian   Church   has  been    confronted   all   that   time 
with  her  great  task ;  and,  however  imperfect  her  light 
and  her  methods  have  often  been,  she  has  set  processes 
agoing,  and  pressed  on  in  lines  of  action,  in  which  she 
has  not   been  without   her   reward.      Also   the   public 
action  of  at  least  the  European  races,  stimulated  and 
guided  by  Christianity,  has  been  inspired  by  faith  in 
progress  and   in  a  reign  of  justice,  and    has    applied 
itself  to  improve  the  conditions  of  men.     How  much  of 
sin  and  pain  still  afflict  the  world  is  too  sadly  evident. 
But   the   memory   of    the   successive   lives    of  saints, 
thinkers,  men  of  public  spirit  and  devoted  public  action, 
is  strong  in  Christian  minds  to-day — it  is  a  long,  ani- 
mating history.     And  never  more  than  at  the  present 


3o8  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

time  did  the  world  press  itself  on  the  Christian  mind  as 
the  sphere  for  effort,  for  helpful  and  hopeful  achieve- 
ment.  All  this  tends  to  fix  the  eye  on  what  may 
happen  before  Christ  comes ;  for  one  asks  room  and 
time  to  fight  the  battle  out,  to  see  the  long  co-operant 
processes  converge  upon  their  goal.  The  conflict  is 
thought  of  as  one  to  be  bequeathed,  like  freedom's 
battle,  from  sire  to  son,  through  indefinite  periods 
beyond  which  men  do  not  very  often  look.  And,  in- 
deed, the  amelioration  of  the  world  and  remedy  of  its 
ills  by  works  of  faith  and  love  is  Christlike  work. 
The  world  cannot  want  it ;  the  fruit  of  it  will  not  be 
withheld ;  and  the  hopeful  ardour  with  which  it  is  pur- 
sued is  Christ's  gift  to  His  people.  For  Christ  Him- 
self healed  and  fed  the  multitudes.  Yet  all  this  shall 
not  replace  the  coming  of  Christ,  and  the  redemption 
that  draws  nigh  with  Him.  The  longing  eyes  that 
gaze  into  the  prospects  of  public-spirited  beneficence 
and  Christian  philanthropy,  do  well ;  but  they  must 
also  look  higher  up  and  further  on. 

One  thing  must  be  said.  It  is  vain  for  us  to  suppose 
we  can  adjust  beforehand,  to  our  own  satisfaction,  the 
elements  which  enter  into  the  future,  so  as  to  make  a 
well-fitted  scheme  of  it.  That  was  not  designed.  And 
in  this  case  two  ways  of  looking  at  the  future  are  apt 
to  strive  together.  The  man  who  is  occupied  with 
processes  that,  as  he  conceives,  might  eventuate  in 
a  reign  of  goodness  reached  by  gradual  amelioration, 
by  successive  victories  of  the  better  cause,  may  look 


iii.  20,  21.]     OUR   CITY  AND  OUR  COMING  KING.  309 


askance  on  the  promise  of  Christ's  coming,  because  he 
dislikes  catastrophe  and  cataclysm.  First  the  blade, 
then  the  ear,  then  the  full  corn  in  the  ear,  is  his  motto. 
And  the  man  who  is  full  of  the  thought  of  the  Lord's 
return,  and  deeply  persuaded  that  nothing  less  will 
eradicate  the  world's  disease,  may  look  with  impatience 
on  measures  that  seem  to  aim  at  slow  and  far  results. 
But  neither  the  one  mode  of  view  nor  the  other  is  to 
be  sacrificed.  Work  is  to  be  done  in  the  world  on  the 
lines  that  promise  best  to  bless  the  world.  Yet  also 
this  faith  must  never  be  let  down — The  Lord  is  coming ; 
the  Lord  shall  come. 

How  decisive  the  change  is  which  Christ  completes  at 
His  coming — how  distinctive,  therefore,  and  unworldly, 
that  citizenship  which  takes  its  type  from  heaven 
where  He  is,  and  from  the  hope  of  His  appearing — is 
last  of  all  set  forth.  Paul  might  have  dwelt  on  many 
great  blessings  the  full  meaning  of  which  will  be  un- 
folded when  Christ  comes ;  for  He  is  to  conform  all 
things  to  Himself.  But  Paul  prefers  to  signalise  what 
shall  befall  our  bodies ;  for  that  makes  us  feel  that  not 
one  element  in  our  state  shall  fail  to  be  subjected  to  the 
victorious  energy  of  Christ.  Our  bodies  are,  in  our 
present  state,  conspicuously  refractory  to  the  influences 
of  the  higher  kingdom.  Regeneration  makes  no  im- 
provement on  them.  In  our  body  we  carry  about  with 
us  what  seems  to  mock  the  idea  of  an  ethereal  and 
ideal  life.     And   when   we  die,   the  corruption  of  the 


310  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


grave  speaks  of  anything  but  hope.  Here,  then,  in 
this  very  point  the  salvation  of  Christ  shall  complete 
its  triumph,  saving  us  all  over  and  all  through.  He 
"  shall  fashion  anew  the  body  of  our  humiliation,  that 
it  may  be  conformed  to  the  body  of  His  glory." 

For  the  Apostle  Paul  the  question  how  the  body  is 
to  be  reckoned  with  in  any  lofty  view  of  human  life  had 
a  peculiar  interest.  One  sees  how  his  mind  dwelt 
upon  it.  He  does  not  indeed  impute  to  the  body  any 
original  or  essential  antagonism  to  the  soul's  better  Hfe. 
But  it  shares  in  the  debasement  and  disorganisation 
implied  in  sin;  it  has  become  the  ready  avenue  for 
many  temptations.  Through  it  the  man  has  become 
participant  of  a  vivid  and  unintermittent  earthliness, 
contrasting  all  too  sadly  with  the  feebleness  of  spiri- 
tual impressions  and  affections,  so  that  the  balance 
of  our  being  is  deranged.  Nor  does  grace  directly 
affect  men's  bodily  conditions.  Here,  then,  is  an 
element  in  a  renewed  life  that  has  a  peculiar  refractori- 
ness and  irresponsiveness.  So  much  is  this  so  that  sin 
in  our  complex  nature  easily  turns  this  way,  easily 
finds  resources  in  this  quarter.  Hence  sin  in  us  often 
takes  its  denomination  from  this  side  of  things.  It  is 
the  flesh,  and  the  minding  of  the  flesh,  that  is  to  be 
crucified.  On  the  other  hand,  just  because  life  for 
us  is  life  in  the  body,  therefore  the  body  with  its 
members  must  be  brought  into  the  service  of  Christ, 
and  must  fulfil  the  will  of  God.     "  Yield  your  bodies  a 


iii.  20,  2I.J     OUR   CITY  AND   OUR   COMING   KING.  311 


living  sacrifice."  "  Your  bodies  are  temples  of  the  Holy 
Ghost."  A  disembodied  Christianity  is  to  the  Apostle 
no  Christianity.  There  may  be  difficulties,  indeed,  in 
carrying  this  consecration  through,  elements  of  resistance 

• 

and  insubordination  to  be  overcome.  If  so,  they  must 
be  fought  down.  *'  I  keep  under  my  body  and  bring 
it  into  subjection,  lest  I  prove  a  castaway."  To  be 
thorough  in  this  proved  hard  even  for  Paul.  "  Who 
shall  deliver  me  from  the  body  of  this  death  ?  " — a  text 
in  which  one  sees  how  the  ''  body  "  offered  itself  as  the 
ready  symbol  of  the  whole  inward  burden  and  difficulty. 
So  the  body  is  dead  because  of  sin :  dying,  fit  to  die, 
appointed  to  die,  and  not  now  renewed  to  life.  "  But 
if  the  Spirit  of  Him  that  raised  up  Christ  from  the  dead 
dwell  in  you.  He  that  raised  up  Christ  from  the  dead 
shall  also  quicken  your  mortal  bodies  by  His  Spirit 
that  dwelleth  in  you."  Then,  limits  now  imposed  on 
right  thinking,  right  feeling,  right  acting,  shall  be  found 
to  have  passed  away.  Till  then  we  groan,  waiting  for 
the  adoption,  the  redemption  of  the  body ;  but  then 
shall  be  the  manifestation  of  the  sons  of  God.  To 
Paul  this  came  home  as  one  of  the  most  definite,  prac- 
tical, and  decisive  forms  in  which  the  triumph  of 
Christ's  salvation  should  be  declared. 

The  body,  then,  by  which  we  hold  converse  with  the 
world,  and  by  which  we  give  expression  to  our  mental 
life,  has  shared  in  the  evil  that  comes  by  sin.  We  find 
it  to  be  the  body  of  our  humiliation.  It  is  not  only 
liable  to  pain,  decay,  and   death,   not   only   subject   to 


312  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PUILIPPIANS. 


much  that  is  humbUng  and  distressing,  but  it  has 
become  an  ill-adapted  organ  for  an  aspiring  soul.  The 
bodily  state  weighs  down  the  soul,  when  its  aspirations 
after  good  have  been  rekindled.  It  is  not  wholly  un- 
connected with  our  physical  state  that  it  is  so  hard  to 
carry  the  recognition  of  God  and  the  hfe  of  faith  into 
the  comings  and  goings  of  the  outward  life ;  so  hard  to 
wed  the  persuasions  of  our  faith  to  the  impressions 
of  our  sense.  But  we  look  forward  to  our  Lord's 
coming  with  the  expectation  that  the  body  of  our 
humiliation  shall  be  transfigured  into  the  likeness  of 
the  body  of  His  glory.  In  this  we  discern  with  what 
a  pervading  energy  He  is  to  subdue  all  things  to 
Himself.  Love  in  righteousness  is  to  triumph  through 
all  spheres. 

We  have  more  than  once  acknowledged  how  natural 
it  is  to  dream  of  constructing  a  Christian  life  on  earth 
with  all  its  elements,  natural  and  spiritual,  perfectly  har- 
monised, each  having  its  place  in  relation  to  each  so  as 
to  make  the  music  of  a  perfect  whole.  And  in  the 
strength  of  such  a  dream,  some  look  down  on  all 
Christian  practice  as  blind  and  narrow,  which  seems  to 
them  to  mar  life  by  setting  one  element  of  it  against 
another.  It  must  be  owned  that  narrow  types  of 
Christianity  have  often  needlessly  oftended  so.  Never- 
theless we  have  here  a  new  proof  that  the  dream  of 
those  who  would  achieve  a  perfect  harmony,  in  the 
present  state  and  under  present  conditions,  is  vain. 
A  perfect  Christian  harmony  of  life  cannot  be  restored 


iii.  20,  2I.J     OUR   CITY  AND   OUR   COMING   KING.  313 


in  the  body  of  our  humiliation.  The  nobler  part  is  to 
own  this,  and  to  confess  that  amid  many  undeserved 
good  gifts,  yet,  in  relation  to  the  great  hope  set  before 
us,  we  groan,  waiting  for  the  redemption  ;  when  Christ 
who  now  fits  us  to  run  the  race  and  bear  the  cross 
shall  come  and  save  us  out  of  all  this,  changing  the 
body  of  our  humiliation  into  the  likeness  of  the  body 
of  His  glory. 

Against  the  ways  of  Jewish  self-righteousness,  and 
against  the  impulses  of  fleshly  minds,  the  Apostle  had 
set  the  true  Christianity — the  methods  in  which  it 
grows,  the  influences  on  which  it  relies,  the  truths  and 
hopes  by  which  it  is  mainly  sustained,  the  high  citizen- 
ship which  it  claims  and  to  the  type  of  which  it 
resolutely  conforms.  All  this  was  possible  in  Christ, 
all  this  was  actual  in  Christ,  all  this  was  theirs  in  Christ. 
Yet  this  is  what  is  brought  into  debate,  by  unbelief  and 
sin ;  this  against  unbelief  and  sin  has  to  be  maintained. 
Some  influences  come  to  shake  us  as  to  the  truth  of  it — 
"  It  is  not  so  real  after  all."  Some  influences  come  to 
shake  us  as  to  the  good  of  it — "  It  is  not  after  all  so  very, 
so  supremely,  so  satisfyingly  good."  Some  influences 
come  to  shake  us  as  to  our  own  part  in  it — "  It  can 
hardly  control  and  sustain  my  life,  for  after  all  perhaps 
— alas,  most  likely — it  is  not  for  me,  it  cannot  be  for  me." 
Against  all  this  we  are  to  make  our  stand,  in  and  with 
our  Lord  and  Master.  He  is  our  confidence  and  our 
strength.  How  the  Apostle  longed  to  see  this  victory 
achieved  in  the  case  of  all  these  Philippians,  who  were 


314  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

the  treasure  and  the  fruit  of  his  life  and  labour !  Be 
decided  about  all  this,  be  clear  about  it,  cast  every  other 
way  of  it  from  you.  ''Therefore,  my  dearly  beloved 
brethren,  my  joy  and  crown,  so  stand  fast  in  the  Lord, 
my  dearly  beloved." 


PEACE  AND  JOY.  ' 


31S 


"  I  exhort  Euodia,  and  I  exhort  Syntyche,  to  be  of  the  same  mind 
in  the  Lord.  Yea,  I  beseech  thee  also,  true  yokefellow,  help  these 
women,  for  they  laboured  with  me  in  the  gospel,  with  Clement  also, 
and  the  rest  of  my  fellow- workers  whose  names  are  in  the  book  of 
life. 

"Rejoice  in  the  Lord  alway:  again  I  will  say,  Rejoice.  Let  your 
forbearance  be  known  unto  all  men.  The  Lord  is  at  hand.  In 
nothing  be  anxious;  but  in  everything  by  prayer  and  supplication 
with  thanksgiving  let  your  requests  be  made  known  unto  God.  And 
the  peace  of  God,  which  passeth  all  understanding,  shall  guard  your 
hearts  and  your  thoughts  in  Christ  Jesus." — Phil.  iv.  2-7  (R.V.). 


316 


CHAPTER   XVII. 

PEACE  AND  JOY. 

TTAR.  LIGHTFOOT  has  observed  that  the  passages 
-■->'  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  which  record  the 
Macedonian  experiences  of  Paul,  have  a  good  deal  to 
say  about  women  (Acts  xvi.,  xvii.).  They  convey  the 
impression  that  in  Macedonia  women  had  a  position 
and  exercised  an  influence,  at  least  in  religious  matters, 
that  was  not  usual  in  the  Greek  world.  And  he  has 
appealed  to  the  remains  of  ancient  Macedonian  inscrip- 
tions to  support  the  general  idea  that  exceptional 
respect  was  accorded  to  women  in  that  country.  Here, 
at  any  rate,  we  have  two  women  of  note  in  the  Church 
at  Philippi.  They  might,  very  likely,  possess  social 
standing  and  influence.  They  had  been  qualified  to 
render,  and  in  point  of  fact  did  render,  important  help 
in  setting  forward  the  cause  of  Christ  in  that  city.  We 
cannot  doubt  therefore  that  they  were  warm-hearted 
Christian  women,  who  had  deeply  felt  the  power  of  the 
gospel,  so  that,  like  many  of  their  sisters  in  later  days, 
they  gladly  embarked  in  the  service  of  it.     In   those 

days  such  service  on  the  part  of  women  implied   no 

317 


3i8  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHIPPIANS. 

small  effort  of  faith  ;  and  doubtless  it  had  cost  them 
something  in  the  way  of  cross-bearing.  But  now, 
disagreements  and'  estrangement  had  fallen  out  between 
them.  Most  likely  the  keen  practical  energies,  which 
made  them  serviceable  Christians,  had  brought  about 
collision  on  some  points  in  which  their  views  differed. 
And  then  they  had  not  managed  the  difference  well. 
Self  came  in,  and  coloured  and  deepened  it.  Now,  one 
may  think,  they  were  in  danger  of  being  always  ready 
to  differ,  and  to  differ  with  mutual  distrust  and  dislike. 

People  cannot  always  think  alike,  not  even  Christians 
who  share  the  same  service.  But  there  is  a  Christian  way 
of  behaving  about  these  inevitable  divergences.  And, 
in  particular,  in  such  cases  we  might  be  expected  to 
show  a  superiority,  in  Christ  aur  Lord,  to  minor  differ- 
ences, not  allowing  them  to  trouble  the  great  agreement 
and  the  dear  affection  in  which  Christ  has  bound  us. 
Whatever  is  to  be  said  about  a  difference,  as  to  its 
merits,  the  main  thing  that  has  to  be  said  about  it  often 
is,  "  You  should  not  have  let  it  come  between  you.  You 
should,  both  of  you,  have  been  big  enough  and  strong 
enough  in  Christ,  to  know  how  to  drop  it  and  forget  it. 
In  making  so  much  of  it,  in  allowing  it  to  make  so  much 
of  itself,  you  have  been  children,  and  naughty  children." 

What  this  difference  was  we  do  not  know  ;  and  it  is 
of  no  consequence.  Paul  does  not  address  himself  to 
it.  He  holds  both  parties  to  be  in  the  wrong  now,  and, 
for  his  purpose,  equally  in  the  wrong  ;  and  he  addresses 
entreaty  to  both,  in  exactly  the  same  terms,  to  agree  in 


iv.  2-7.]  PEACE  AND  JOY.  319 

Christ  and  be  done  with  it :  no  longer  to  allow  this  thing 
to  mar  their  own  edification  and  hinder  the  cause  of 
Christ.  Yet,  while  he  is  sure  that  this  is  the  right  way, 
he  does  not  conceal  from  himself  how  difficult  human 
nature  finds  it  to  come  happily  out  of  such  a  complica- 
tion. So  he  appeals  to  some  old  comrade  at  Philippi, 
whom  he  calls  his  "genuine  yokefellow,"  to  lend  a 
hand.  A  Christian  bystander,  a  friend  of  both  parties, 
might  help  them  out  of  the  difficulty.  In  this  connec- 
tion the  Apostle's  mind  goes  back  to  happy  days  of 
cordial  effort  at  Philippi,  in  which  these  women,  and  the 
"  yokefellow,"  and  Clement,  and  others  had  all  been  at 
work,  shoulder  to  shoulder,  all  rejoicing  in  the  common 
salvation  and  the  joint  service. 

In  difficulties  between  Christians,  as  between  other 
people,  wise  and  loving  friendship  may  perform  the  most 
important  services.  Selfishness  shrinks  from  rendering 
these  ;  and  on  the  other  hand,  meddlesomeness,  which  is 
a  form  of  egotism  combined  with  coarseness,  rushes  in 
only  to  do  harm.  Wisdom  is  needed,  mainly  the  wisdom 
which  consists  in  loving  thoughtfulness.  The  love 
which  seeketh  not  her  own,  and  is  not  easily  provoked, 
is  much  called  for  in  this  ministry  of  reconciliation. 

These  good  women  had  little  idea,  probably,  that 
their  names  should  come  down  the  ages  in  connection 
with  this  disagreement  of  theirs  ;  and  they  might  have 
deprecated  it  if  they  had  thought  of  it.  But  let  them 
be  remembered  with  all  honour — two  saints  of  God, 
who  loved  and  laboured  for  Christ,  who  bore  the  cross. 


320  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


and  each  of  whom  was  so  important  to  the  Church,  that 
it  was  a  matter  of  public  interest  to  have  this  difficulty 
removed  out  of  the  way  of  both.  As  to  it,  we  of  later 
times  have  not  succeeded  in  keeping  Christian  activity 
so  free  of  personal  misunderstandings  as  to  be  entitled 
on  this  account  to  assume  any  attitude  of  superiority. 
Let  us  think  only  with  tenderness  and  affection  of  those 
venerable  and  beloved,  those  long-remembered  mothers 
in  Christ,  Euodia  and  Syntyche. 

The  commentators  have  tried  to  divine  something 
further  about  this  "true  yokefellow";  but  with  no 
success.  As  to  Clement,  some  have  been  willing  to 
identify  him  with  the  Clement  known  to  have  laboured 
in  the  first  age  at  Rome,  and  who  is  reported  to  have 
been  the  writer  of  a  well-known  Epistle  from  the 
Church  at  Rome  to  that  at  Corinth.  He,  again,  has 
been  by  some  identified  with  another  Clement,  also  a 
Roman,  a  near  relation  of  the  Emperor  Domitian,  whom 
we  have  reason  to  believe  to  have  been  a  Christian. 
Both  identifications  are  probably  mistaken  ;  and  the 
Clement  now  before  us  was  no  doubt  resident  at 
Philippi,  and  belonged  to  a  somewhat  earlier  generation 
than  his  Roman  namesake.  The  Roman  world  was 
full  of  Clements,  and  there  is  nothing  surprising  in 
meeting  several  Christians  who  bore  the  name. 

With  the  "  yokefellow"  and  with  Clement,  the  Apostle 
recalls  other  "labourers"  who  belonged  to  the  fellowship 
of  those  gospel  days  at  Philippi.  We  are  not  to  think 
that  they  were  all  gifted  as  teachers  pv  preachers  ;  but 


iv.  2-7.1  PEACE  AND  JOY.  321 

they  were  zealous  Christians  who  helped  as  they  could 
to  gather  and  to  confirm  the  Church.  Paul  will  not 
give  their  names  ;  but  it  must  not  be  thought  that  the 
names  have  ceased  to  be  dear  and  honourable  to  him. 
"They  shall  not  be  in  my  letter,"  he  says,  "  but  they 
are  written  in  even  a  better  place,  in  the  book  of  life. 
They  are  precious,  not  to  me  only,  but  to  my  Master." 
Mere,  again,  if  any  one  had  asked  Paul  how  he  ventured 
to  speak  with  so  much  assurance  of  the  condition  of 
persons  whose  course  was  not  yet  ended,  he  would 
no  doubt  have  replied,  as  in  ch.  i.  7  :  "  It  is  meet  for 
me  to  think  thus  of  them,  because  I  have  them  in  my 
heart  :  because  both  in  my  bonds,  and  in  the  defence 
and  confirmation  of  the  gospel,  they  all  are  partakers 
with  me  of  grace." 

These  personal  references  indicate  that  the  main 
burden  of  the  Apostle's  thought  in  the  Epistle  has  been 
disposed  of,  and  that  it  is  drawing  to  a  close.  Yet 
he  finds  it  natural  to  add  some  closing  admonitions. 
They  are  brief  and  pithy  ;  they  do  not  seem  to  labour 
with  the  weight  of  thought  and  feeling  which  pours 
through  the  preceding  chapter.  Yet  they  are  not  quite 
fragmentary.  A  definite  conception  of  the  case  to  be 
provided  for  underlies  them,  and  also  a  definite  con- 
ception of  the  way  in  which  its  necessities  are  to  be  met. 

He  had  been  pouring  out  his  soul  on  the  subject  of 
the  true  Christian  life — the  deep  sources  from  which  it 
springs,  the  great  channels  in  which  it  runs,  the  magni- 
ficent conditions  of  Christ's  kingdom   under  which  it 

21 


322  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


becomes  possible  and  is  accomplished.  But  yet, 
another  order  of  things  crosses  all  this.  It  is  the  in- 
cessant detail  of  human  life  on  earth,  with  its  pettiness 
and  superficiality,  and  yet  with  its  inevitable  hold  upon 
us  all.  How  much  we  are  at  the  mercy  of  it  !  How 
hard  to  keep  quite  true  to  the  grand  music  of  the 
gospel  we  believe,  amid  the  multifarious  patter  of  the 
incidents  of  life,  playing  on  the  surface  only,  but  on  the 
sensitive  surface  of  our  being.  The  case  of  Euodia 
and  Syntyche  was  itself  but  an  illustration,  of  the  com- 
monest kind,  of  the  liability  of  believing  lives  to  be 
swayed  and  marred  in  this  way.  For  all  these  little 
things  claim  attention  ;  they  assume  a  magnitude  that 
does  not  belong  to  them,  and  they  take  a  place  to 
which  they  have  no  right.  Can  anything  be  said  to 
help  us  to  some  prevailing  mood,  in  which  we  shall  be 
likely  to  take  the  right  attitude  towards  these  elements 
of  life,  and,  at  the  same  time,  to  keep  due  touch  with 
"the  springs  of  our  spiritual  welfare? 

The  Apostle  reverts  to  the  significant  "good-bye" 
which  was  heard  at  the  beginning  of  the  third  chapter. 
"  Rejoice,"  "  Be  of  good  cheer,"  was  the  usual  fare- 
well salute.  He  had  begun  to  use  it,  in  the  third 
chapter,  with  an  emphasis  on  the  native  signification  of 
the  word.  Now  he  resumes  it  more  emphatically  still, 
for  here  he  finds  the  keynote  which  he  wants  :  ''  Rejoice 
in  the  Lord  alway ;  again  I  will  say  it.  Rejoice." 

If  joy  be  possible,  it  would  seem  to  need  no  great 
persuasion    to   induce   men    to  embrace   it.     But,  as   a 


iv.  2-7.]  PEACE  AND  JOY.  323 


matter  of  fact,  Christians  fail  greatly  here.  In  the 
Old  Testament  there  are  abundant  exhortations  to 
Israel  to  rejoice  in  the  Lord  :  the  Lord  being  Jehovah, 
without  further  distinction  or  limitation  ;  and  the  ground 
of  rejoicing  being  Mis  revealed  character,  especially 
His  mercy  and  His  truth,  and  the  fact  that  He  is 
Israel's  God.  Here  the  Lord  is  our  Lord  Jesus,  in 
whom  the  Father  is  both  known  and  found.  Now,  to 
rejoice  in  Him  is,  and  should  be  recognised  as  being, 
for  believers,  the  most  direct  inference  from  their  faith. 
For  if  this  Lord  be  what  the  believer  holds  Him  to  be, 
then  there  is  more  in  Christ  to  make  him  glad,  than 
there  can  be  in  anything  whatever  to  make  him  sorry. 
This  applies  even  to  remembered  sin  ;  for  where  sin 
abounded,  grace  doth  much  more  abound.  If  indeed 
the  joy  be  really  in  the  Lord,  it  will  be  found  to  agree 
well  with  humility  and  penitence,  as  well  as  with  dili- 
gence and  patience  ;  for  all  these  things,  and  whatever 
should  accompany  them,  come  naturally  from  faith  in 
Christ.  But  not  the  less,  joy  should  have  its  place  and 
its  exercise. 

If  one  will  think  of  it,  it  will  be  plain  that  rejoicing 
in  the  Lord  just  denotes  this,  viz.,  that  the  influence  of 
the  objects  of  faith  has  free  play  through  the  soul.  It 
is  well  that  faith  should  bring  our  intellective  powers 
under  its  influence— that  we  should  be  brought  to  a 
vivid  sense  of  the  reality  of  Christ,  and  that  our  minds 
should  work  in  reference  to  Him  as  they  do  in  reference 
to   things  which  are  felt  to  be  real,  and  which  claiox 


324  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PIHUPPIANS. 

to  be  understood.  That  is  well,  even  if  as  yet  some 
malign  force  seems  to  impede  cordial  appreciation  and 
personal  fellowship.  It  is  well,  again,  if  Christ  is  felt 
drawing  out  personal  trust,  and  with  that,  genuine 
affection,  so  that  the  heart  beats  with  desire  and  ad- 
miration, even  though  for  the  present  that  can  only  be 
'  under  the  burden  of  a  perplexed  and  sorrowful  mind. 
But  when  the  conviction  makes  way  through  all  the 
soul,  first  that  Christ  is  most  real,  and  second  that 
Christ  is  most  good  and  desirable,  and  thirdly  that 
Christ  is  for  me,  and  when  the  soul  surrenders 
thoroughly  to  it  all,  then  gladness  is  the  token  that 
faith  is  playing  freely  through  the  human  soul,  through- 
out all  its  provinces.  It  is  the  flag  hoisted  to  signify 
that  Christ  is  believed  and  loved  indeed.  On  the  other 
hand,  wrong  is  done  to  the  Lord,  and  an  evil  report 
is  brought  up  upon  Him,  when  those  who  profess  to 
believe  in  Him,  fail  to  rejoice  in  Him. 

You  well  may  rejoice  in  the  Lord ;  you  ought  surely 
to  do  it.  You  ought  to  give  yourselves  time  to  think 
and  feel  so  as  to  rejoice ;  you  should  be  ashamed  to  fail 
to  rejoice.  You  do  not  apprehend  aright  your  position 
as  a  believer,  you  do  not  take  the  attitude  that  befits 
you,  if  the  Lord  believed  in,  though  perhaps  He  makes 
you  diligent,  and  patient,  and  penitent,  and  thankful, 
does  not  also  make  you  heartily  glad.  Let  the  elements 
of  this  gladness  come  warm  home  to  your  heart,  and 
do  their  work.  Then  you  will  reahse,  as,  short  of  this, 
you  never  can,  how  the  believer  rises  aboye  the  things. 


iv.  2-7.]  PEACE  AND  JOY.  325 


that  threaten  to  entangle  him,  and  can   do  all   things 
through  Christ  that  strengtheneth  him. 

And,  in  particular,  how  influential  this  is  to  preserve 
men  from  being  unduly  moved  and  swayed  by  the 
passing  things  of  time  !  These  sway  us  by  joy  and 
grief,  by  hope  and  fear ;  and  what  an  inordinate 
measure  of  those  affections  they  do  beget  in  us !  But 
let  the  great  joy  of  the  Lord  have  its  place,  and  then 
those  lesser  claimants  will  have  to  content  themselves 
with  smaller  room.  A  great  grief  shuts  out  lesser 
griefs.  When  a  woman  has  lost  her  son,  will  she 
grieve  greatly  for  the  loss  of  her  purse  ?  So  a  great 
joy  keeps  down  the  excess  of  lesser  joys.  A  man  that 
has  just  won  the  heart  and  hand  of  the  woman  he  loves, 
will  not  be  greatly  concerned  about  winning  or  losing 
at  some  game.  He  will  be  about  equally  glad  either 
way.  So  he  whose  heart  thrills  with  the  joy  of  Christ 
will  feel  the  pleasure  and  the  pain  of  earthly  things  ; 
but  they  will  not  master  him,  nor  run  away  with  him. 

According  to  the  Apostle,  a  believer  in  the  way  of 
his  duty,  if  he  cherishes  this  joy,  may  ordinarily  have 
a  great  deal  of  it.  And,  as  it  were,  he  urges  us  :  "  Now 
do  not  be  moved  away  from  it.  Do  not  be  so  foolish. 
Various  things  will  come,  all  sorts  of  things,  claiming  to 
preoccupy  your  mind,  so  that  for  the  present  this  joy 
shall  fall  into  the  background.  They  claim  it — and  far 
too  often  they  are  allowed  to  succeed.  Do  not  let  them. 
'  Rejoice  in  the  Lord  a/way ;  again  I  will  say.  Rejoice.'  " 

Always :    for   many    believers    rejoice    in    the    Lord 


326  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHJPPL4NS. 

sometimes  ;  for  example,  in  hours  of  undisturbed  medi- 
tation. But  when  they  go  out  into  the  stir  of  Hfe,  to 
meet  experiences  which  either  greatly  gratify  or  greatly 
grieve  them,  then  it  seems  fit  that  the  new  passion 
should  have  its  turn,  and  the  heart  insists  on  this 
indulgence.  So  also  when  some  great  hope  absorbs 
the  mind,  or  some  great  anxiety  weighs  upon  it,  the 
soul  seems  fascinated  with  the  coming  good  or  ill,  and 
hangs  upon  the  prospect  as  if  nothing  else  for  the 
present  could  be  minded.  Now  the  Apostle  does  not 
say  that  insensibility  is  the  duty  of  Christians  in  these 
circumstances.  Indeed  it  is  because  these  experiences 
do  interest  and  impress,  that  they  become  an  effective 
instrument  of  Divine  training.  But  Christ  is  fit  to  be 
rejoiced  in,  right  through  all  vicissitudes ;  and  common 
experiences,  duly  dealt  with,  ought  to  throw  into  relief 
the  reasons  why  He  must  still  be  cause  of  gladness, 
whatever  may  be  felt  about  other  things.  This  main- 
tained joy  of  the  Lord — a  rejoicing  faith,  a  rejoicing 
love,  a  rejoicing  obedience— this  is  the  temper  in  virtue 
of  which  all  else  of  life  will  fall  into  its  due  place,  and 
will  assume  its  just  proportion.  ''Though  the  fig  tree 
shall  not  blossom,  neither  shall  fruit  be  in  the  vines  ; 
the  labour  of  the  olive  shall  fail,  and  the  fields  shall 
yield  no  meat  ;  the  flock  shall  be  cut  off  from  the  fold, 
and  there  shall  be  no  herd  in  the  stalls :  yet  I  will 
rejoice  in  the  Lord,  I  will  joy  in  the  God  of  my  salva- 
tion "  (Hab.  iii.  17,  18). 

So  then,  *'  Let  your  moderation  (or  forbearance)  be 


iv.  2-7. J  PEACE  AND  JOY.  327 

known  to  all  men."  The  word  here  used  expresses  a 
state  of  mind  opposed  to  the  eagerness  that  overrates 
the  worth  of  our  personal  objects,  and  to  the  arrogance 
that  insists  on  our  own  will  about  them.  Some  would 
render  it  "  considerateness."  It  is  a  temper  which 
dictates  a  gentle  and  forbearing  way  of  dealing  with 
men.  This  is  the  appropriate  evidence  that  the  im- 
petuosity of  the  heart  about  earthly  things  has  been 
assuaged  by  the  unseen  presence  and  the  influence  of 
Christ.  Christ  seen,  felt,  and  rejoiced  in,  is  the  secret 
of  this  moderation.  A  great  vision  of  faith,  and  that 
not  a  vision  which  is  dreaded,  but  a  vision  which  is 
loved,  brings  the  movement  of  the  soul  into  a  happy 
order.  Now,  not  only  so  :  not  only  does  the  love  of 
Christ,  unseen  and  absent,  work  in  this  way  ;  but  Christ 
is  coming  and  is  near.  The  hopes  connected  with  Him 
are  soon  to  be  realised,  the  gladness  of  fellowship  with 
Him  is  soon  to  be  complete.  The  Lord  is  at  hand. 
"  Be  patient  therefore,  brethren,  unto  the  coming  of 
the  Lord.  Stablish  your  hearts.  The  coming  of  the 
Lord  draweth  nigh  "  (James  v.  7). 

For  believers,  as  we  have  already  seen,  the  coming 
of  the  Lord  is,  according  to  the  New  Testament,  the 
great  hope.  Then  the  joy  in  the  Lord  is  to  be  complete 
and  crowned.  Those  who  apprehend  that  glad  day  as 
near  are  not  supposed  to  be  capable  of  yielding  up  their 
hearts  to  the  uncontrolled  sway  of  mere  earthly  interests. 

Here,  however,  a  question  arises.  Paul  speaks  of 
the  day  as  near,  and  calls  on  his  disciples  to  live  under 


328  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


the  influence  of  that  belief.  He  does  not  merely  say 
that  it  may  be  near,  but  that  it  is.  Yet  we  now  know 
that  the  day  was  then  more  than  eighteen  hundred 
years  away.  In  the  light  of  this  fact,  one  asks  what 
we  are  to  make  of  the  statement  before  us,  and  what 
we  are  to  make  of  the  view  of  Christian  life  which  the 
statement  implies. 

Our  Lord  expressly  withheld  from  His  disciples  all 
definite  statement  of  times  and  seasons  in  this  con- 
nection. Yet  the  Early  Church  with  one  consent 
expected  the  Lord  to  come  within  comparatively  few 
years  (what  are  commonly  called  few),  and  language 
shaped  itself  in  accordance  with  that  impression.  We 
have  here,  however,  more  than  a  mere  mode  of  phrasing. 
The  nearness  of  Christ  is  emphasised  as  the  ground  on 
which  Christian  experience  ought  to  build.  Was  not 
this  a  mistake  ? 

But  one  may  ask  in  reply,  Was  it  after  all  untrue  that 
Christ's  coming  was  near  then,  or  that  it  is  near  now  ? 
Even  if  anticipations  in  our  own  day  which  bring  it 
within  a  generation  are  to  fail  again,  as  they  have  always 
done  before,  shall  we  think  that  the  Lord  is  not  near  ? 

There  is  a  nearness  which  pertains  to  all  future 
events  which  are  at  once  very  great  and  important,  and 
also  are  absolutely  certain.  Being  so  great,  involving 
interests  so  great,  and  being  contemplated  in  their 
inevitable  certainty,  such  events  can  loom  large  upon 
the  eye,  and  they  can  make  their  influence  felt  in  the 
present,  whatever  tale   of    days  may  interpose  before 


iv.  2-7.]  PEACE  AND  JOY.  329 

they  actually  arrive.  If,  for  instance,  one  were  told  of 
a  friend,  whom  he  supposed  he  might  meet  at  any  time, 
"  You  shall  certainly  see  him  six  months  hence,"  the 
reply  might  be,  "  Six  months  !  That  is  a  long  time  to 
wait."  But  if  he  were  told  with  infallible  authority, 
"  Six  months  hence  you  shall  die,"  would  he  then  say, 
"  It  is  a  long  time  "  ?  Would  he  not  feel  that  it  was 
near  ?  Would  not  an  event  so  momentous  as  death,  so 
inclusive  of  all  interests  and  all  issues,  prove  able  to 
stretch,  as  it  were,  across  six  months,  and  to  come  into 
each  day,  as  part  of  that  day's  concern  ?  So  of  the 
coming  of  Christ.  It  is  the  great  event  for  the  indi- 
vidual, the  Church,  the  world.  All  issues  run  up  to  it ; 
all  developments  are  broken  off  by  it  ;  all  earthly 
histories  await  its  decision.  To  it  all  earthly  move- 
ment tends ;  from  it  all  that  lies  beyond  is  dated.  It 
is  the  great  gate  of  the  world  to  come.  Let  us  think 
what  it  means  :  and  suppose  we  could  be  assured  that 
it  is  still  ten  thousand  years  away,  shall  we  say,  "  How 
far  off  it  is  "  ?  Not  if  we  believe  in  its  certainty,  and 
realise  what  it  means.  If  we  do  so,  our  hearts  will 
stir  and  thrill  as  we  hearken  how  the  surges  of  the 
eternal  world  are  beating  on  the  thin  barrier  of  ten 
thousand  years.  Come  when  it  may,  it  comes  hasting 
to  us,  pressing  before  it  all  that  lies  between,  big  with 
the  decisions  and  the  fulfilments  of  Eternity.  If  we 
truly  believe  and  rightly  estimate  it,  we  shall  feel  that  it 
is  near — even  at  the  door.  We  shall  be  aware  when- 
ever we  look  forward  that  beyond  all  possible  events  of 


53©  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHH^PIANS. 


earthly  history  it  rises  high,  catching  and  holding  our 
gaze,  and  hurrying  toward  our  individual  selves  not  one 
whit  the  less  because  it  aims  at  others  too. 

We  are  apt  to  ask  why  the  words  of  warning  and 
encouragement  in  reference  to  the  future  are  not  con- 
nected with  the  prospect  of  death,  rather  than  with  that 
of  the  Lord's  return  ;  for  death  certainly  is  the  topic 
generally  selected  for  such  purposes  by  moralists  and 
preachers    of  more    recent    days.      The    answer    may 
partly  be,  that  the  possibility  and  likelihood  of  the  Lord's 
return,  even  in  the  lifetime  of  themselves  and  their  con- 
temporaries, might  render  it  more  natural  for  the  Apostles 
to  fix  all  but  exclusively  on  that.     Yet   this   will  not 
suffice.     For  nobody  could  overlook  the  fact  that  some 
believers  were  dying,  and  that  death  before  the  Lord's 
return  might  well   be  the  portion  of  more.     Besides,  in 
particular  circumstances,  death  does  come  into  view  in  a 
perfectly  easy  and  natural  way,  as  at  ch.  i.  23  ;  and  the 
bearing  of  it  on  what  lies  nearer  is  considered.     The 
true  answer  is  that  death  is  not  the  great  expectation 
of  the  believer — not  death,  but  victory  over  death,  con- 
summated and  conclusively  manifested  when  the  Lord 
comes.     This  expectation  certainly  is  associated  with 
the   solemn    prospect  of  judgment ;  but  not  so  as  to 
quench  the  gladness  of  the  hope  for  those  who  love  the 
Lord  and  have  trusted  in  Him.     This  is  our  expecta- 
tion— "the    Lord    Jesus    Christ,  who    is    our   hope" 
(i    Tim.    i.    i).     Death    is    a    great    event  ;    but    it    is 
negative,  privative,  and,  after    all,   provisional.     True, 


iv.  2-7.]  PEACE  AND  JOY.  331 


it  seals  us  up  for  the  coming  of  the  Lord,  and  so,  in 
many  respects,  it  may  be,  for  many  purposes,  practically 
identified  with  that  coming.  The  sermons  which  are 
preached  upon  it,  commonly  from  Old  Testament  texts, 
are,  no  doubt,  well  grounded  and  edifying.  But  the 
New  Testament,  speaking  to  believers,  all  but  con- 
stantly passes  on  to  the  day  of  the  Lord  as  the  true 
focus  of  the  future  ;  and  it  will  be  well  for  us  to  conform 
our  thinking  and  our  feeling  to  this  model.  No  one 
can  estimate,  who  has  not  made  it  matter  of  personal 
study,  how  large  and  how  influential  a  place  this  topic 
takes  in  New  Testament  teaching. 

Meanwhile,  no  doubt,  the  vicissitudes  and  the  possi- 
bilities of  earthly  life  press  upon  us.  Now  the  Apostle 
provides  a  special  additional  relief  for  tfiat.  We  are 
not  merely  prepossessed  with  a  joy  that  should  fortify 
us  against  undue  disturbance  from  this  source,  but  we 
have  access  in  all  things  to  the  mind  and  heart  of  our 
Father.  We  can  bring  our  thoughts  and  wishes  about 
them  all  into  contact  with  the  deep,  true  thoughts  and 
with  the  fatherly  love  of  God.  The  incidents  and  the 
possibilities  of  life  exercise  us  :  they  tend  to  become 
anxieties,  keen  and  wearing ;  and  anxieties  are  the 
materials  of  disturbance  and  temptation.  "  Be  anxious 
about  nothing  ;  but  in  all  things  by  prayer  and  suppli- 
cation, with  thankfulness,  let  your  requests  be  made 
known  unto  God." 

This  is  the  practical  way  of  getting  continually  to 
those  springs  of  joy  which  comfort  and  establish  the 


OJ" 


THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


heart.  The  way  to  be  anxious  about  nothing  is  to  be 
prayerful  about  everything. 

It  is  promised  that  when  we  pray  in  faith  God  hears 
us,  and  that  he  that  asketh  receiveth.  However,  this 
does  not  mean  that  whatever  appears  to  us  desirable 
shall  certainly  be  brought  to  pass  in  answer  to  prayer. 
That  would  be  to  sacrifice  our  own  welfare,  and  also 
the  order  of  God's  world,  to  our  shortsightedness  and 
vanity.  There  is  great  reason  to  believe  indeed  that 
those  who  live  by  prayer  find  many  a  desire  granted, 
and  many  a  burden  lifted,  in  token  of  God's  loving 
interest  in  them,  and  the  heed  He  gives  to  their 
prayers.  But  we  are  not  to  start  from  a  general 
principle  that  we  are  to  get  all  our  own  way  by  praying. 
Two  things  we  may  fix  upon.  First,  the  absolute 
promises  of  the  gospel,  the  blessings  which  pertain  to 
eternal  life,  are  given  to  us  through  prayer.  "  This 
poor  man  cried,  and  the  Lord  heard  him."  Secondly, 
concerning  all  other  things,  we  have  access  to  God  in 
prayer,  as  to  One  who  grudges  us  no  good  thing ;  we 
are  to  express  our  anxieties  and  our  desires,  and  to 
receive  the  assurance  that  they  are  lovingly  considered 
by  One  who  knows  our  frame  and  understands  our 
troubles.  Often  the  answer  comes,  even  in  small 
things.  But,  generally,  we  may  in  this  point  have  an 
absolute  assurance  that  we  shall  either  have  what  we 
ask,  or  else  something  which  God  sees  to  be  better 
for  us  than  that. 

It  is  this  second  article  of  the  doctrine  of  prayer  that 


iv.  2-7.]  PEACE  AND  JOY.  33: 


is  chiefly  in  view  here.     The  prayer  of  faith  must  be  a 
prayer  of  thanksgiving,  because  faith  knows  how  much 
it  owes  to  God.     *'  Thou  hast  not  dealt  with  us  after 
our  sins."     At  the  same  time  it  has  supphcations"  and 
requests,    over  and   above    the    great   petition   for  Hfe 
eternal.     For  our  daily  human  experience  is  God's  pro- 
vidence to  us.     It  exercises  our  thoughts  and  feelings, 
and    sets   agoing   contemplations    and    desires,    which 
may  be  shortsighted  and  erring,  but,  so  far,  they  are 
the  best  that  we  can  make  of  it;  or,   if  not  the   best, 
they  have  the  more  need  to  be  corrected.     Here,  then, 
we  are  encouraged  to  pour  out  our  hearts  to  God.     We 
are  to  do  it  with  submission  :  that  is  one  of  the  best 
parts  of  the  privilege,  for  our  Father  knows  best.     At 
the  same  time,  we  are  to  do  it  with  supplication  ;  we 
not  only  ma}-,  but  we  should.     Our  desires  should  all 
be  made   known  in   this  quarter ;  nowhere    will    they 
have  a  kindlier  hearing.     So,  last  of  all,  we  come,  not 
only   touching   eternal    life,    but    touching  each   day's 
concerns,  into  a  blessed  agreement  with  God  our  Father 
through  Christ.     It    is    agreed,    that   He    takes  loving 
charge  of  our  anxieties  and  desires,  as  One  who  would 
withhold  no  good  from  us  ;  and  it  is  agreed,  that  we 
put  unreserved  confidence  in  Him, — in  which  confidence 
we  say,  "Abba,  Father  ;  not  our  will,  but  Thine  be  done." 
The  confidence  we  have  that  all  this  is  most  real  and 
solid,    and    not  merely  a   deceptive  piece  of  religious 
acting,    comes  to  us  in  the  channel  of  the    faith  and 
experience  which   have  been  fulfilled  in  God's  children 


334  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

from  the  first ;  but  it  is  most  emphatically  confirmed 
and  made  sure  to  us  by  Christ.  He  has  taught  us  to 
pray.  His  is  the  religion  in  which  men  pray.  Under 
His  influence  we  come  away  from  ceremonial  utter- 
ances, and  also  from  the  despairing  experiments  of 
supplication  with  which,  in  other  religions,  men  assail 
the  heavens;  and,  hand  in  hand  with  that  loving 
Mediator,  we  pray.  Prayer,  when  it  is  real,  when  it 
is  "  in  the  Holy  Spirit,"  is  a  wonderfully  simple  and  a 
wonderfully  great  thing. 

So  it  comes  to  pass  that  the  peace  of  God  which 
passeth  all  understanding  is  found.  For  this  great  and 
deep  agreement  with  God  in  Christ,  about  all  things 
great  and  small,  is  the  very  entrance  into  the  peace  of 
God  Himself,  and  is  the  participation  of  it.  In  this,  as 
in  other  aspects,  things  are  daily  realised  in  the  history 
of  believers,  that  pass  all  understanding,  because  God 
in  Christ  is  in  the  matter.  The  infinite  and  eternal 
life  is  wedding  itself  to  us  and  our  affairs.  It  may  be 
understood,  finally,  that  this  peace,  arising  to  Christians 
at  the  throne  of  grace,  guards  their  minds  and  hearts. 
It  guards  them  against  being  overcharged,  outworn, 
surprised  ;  it  guards  them  against  being  carried  captive 
by  earthly  care.  Yet  this  peace  does  not  disable  them 
for  earthly  business.  Rather,  because  their  main  in- 
terests are  so  secure,  it  gives  them  calmness  and  clear- 
ness ;  it  supplies  them  a  moral  vantage  ground  from 
which  to  dispose  of  all  earthly  affairs. 


THE   THINGS  TO  FIX  UPON. 


335 


"  Finally,  brethren,  whatsoever  things  are  true,  whatsoever  things 
are  honourable  [venerable],  whatsoever  things  are  just,  whatsoever 
things  are  pure,  whatsoever  things  are  lovely,  whatsoever  things  are  of 
good  report;  if  there  be  any  virtue,  and  if  there  be  any  praise,  think 
on  these  things.  The  things  which  ye  both  learned  and  received  and 
heard  and  saw  in  me,  these  things  do :  and  the  God  of  peace  shall 
be  with  you."— Phil.  iv.  8,  9  (R.V.). 


-^^6 


CHAPTER   XVllI. 

THE   THINGS   TO  FIX   UPON. 

THE  topics  last  considered  bring  us  naturally  to 
the  remarkable  exhortation  of  vv.  8  and  9.  This 
proceeds  on  the  same  view  of  the  moral  and  spiritual 
situation,  and  completes  what  the  Apostle  has  to  say  in 
reference  to  it. 

If  men  are  to  live  as  citizens  of  a  heavenly  common- 
wealth, on  great  principles  and  to  great  ends,  it  is,  as 
we  have  seen,  a  very  practical  question,  What  to  do 
about  the  inevitable  play  and  onset  of  this  changing 
earthly  life,  which  assails  us  with  motives,  and  detains 
us  upon  interests,  and  inspires  us  with  influences,  of  its 
own.  These  cannot  be  abjured  :  they  are  not  easy  to 
harmonise  with  the  indications  of  that  loftier  and  purer 
world  ;  they  are  prone  to  usurp  the  whole  heart,  or  at 
least  a  very  undue  share  of  it.  This  is  the  practical 
{problem  of  every  honest  Christian.  In  reference  to 
the  solving  of  it  the  Apostle  had  suggested  the  place 
given  to  Christian  joy  ;  he  had  suggested  also  the  place 
and  power  of  prayer.  These  were  indications  as  to 
the  spirit  and  the  method  in  which  a  believer  might 

337  22 


338  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


bring  into  play  the  resources  of  the  Kingdom  of  Christ 
to    control  and  subjugate    those   insubordinate   forces. 
But  might  not  all  this  seem  to  be  too  negative  ?     Does 
it  not  speak  too  much  of  holding   off  and   holding  in  ? 
After  all,  do  not  all  human  experiences  constitute  the 
scene  in  which  we  are  both  formed  and  tried  ?     What 
can  we  make  of  life   unless  we   are   interested  in   it  ? 
How  otherwise  can  we  even  be  religious  in  it  ?     What 
is  life,  if  it  is  not  a  scene  of  inquiry  and  of  search  set  in 
motion  by  the  objects  around  us,  a  scene  in  which  we 
like  and  dislike,  hope  and  fear,  desire  and  think  ?     The 
answer  is.  Yes,  we  are  to  be  keenly  interested  in  the 
experiences  of  life,   and  in  the  possibilities  it    opens. 
Life  is  our  way  of  existing  ;  let  existence  be  animated 
and  intense.    But  while  the  aspects  of  it  that  are  merely 
transient  are  to  have  their  place,  and  may  attract  a 
lively  interest,  there  are  other  aspects,  other  interests, 
other  possibilities.     All  the  transient  interests  have  an 
outgate  towards  such  as  are  eternal.     Life  is  the  ex- 
perience of  beings  that  have  high  capacities,  and  can 
rise  to  noble  destinies.    It  is  the  experience  of  societies 
of  such  beings,   who  mould  one   another,   exchanging 
influences    continually.      The    changing  experience  of 
human  life,'  when  seen  in  the  true  light,  is  found  to  add 
to  all  its  lower  interests  a  play  of  interests  that  are 
more  interesting  as  well  as  more  worthy.    It  is  iridescent 
with  lights  which  it  catches  from  the  infinite  and  the 
eternal.       Every    step    of   it,    every   turn    of  it,    asks 
questions,  offers  opportunities,  calls  for  decisions,  holds 


iv.  8,  9.  J  THE   THINGS    TO  FIX*  UPON.  339 

out  treasures,  which  it  is  the  business  of  a  lifetime  to 
recognise  and  to  secure.  It  has  gains,  it  has  victories, 
it  has  accomplishments,  it  has  glories,  which  need  not 
lead  us  to  deny  its  lower  interests,  but  which  we  may 
reasonably  feel  to  be  far  the  higher.  Endless  shades, 
and  forms,  and  types  of  goodness,  of  being  good,  getting 
good,  doing  good,  gleam  reflected  to  us  from  the  chang- 
ing experience.  Goodness  is  not  one  monotonous 
category  embodied  in  some  solemn  phrase,  and  ex- 
hausted when  that  is  learned.  There  is  no  end  to  the 
rich  variety  in  which  it  is  offered,  and  in  which  it  is  to 
be  caught,  understood,  appropriated.  And  life,  through 
all  the  manifoldness  of  its  legitimate  interests,  and  its 
illegitimate  possibilities,  is  the  scene  in  which  all  this 
passes  before  us,  and  asks  to  be  made  ours.  The 
Apostle  says  to  us.  Think  on  these  things.  Take 
account,  that  is,  of  what  they  are,  and  what  their 
worth  is.  Lay  forth  on  these  the  care  and  pains,  which 
spent  themselves  before  on  mere  pain  and  pleasure, 
loss  and  gain.  Reckon  what  these  are,  search  out 
their  nature,  prove  their  capabilities,  appropriate  and 
enjoy  them.  Thi}ik  on  these  things.  So  earthly  life, 
through  all  its  busy  processes,  shall  acquire  a  nobler 
interest  ;  and  it  shall  begin,  at  the  same  time,  to 
minister  with  unexpected  readiness  to  your  true  wel- 
fare. Enter  then,  or  press  on,  in  this  wide  field.  Be 
this  your  passion  and  pursuit  ;  that  which  unifies  your 
hfe,  and  draws  all  its  resources  towards  one  result. 
We  may  be  helped  to  fix  more  firmly  the  point  of 


340  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


view  from  which  this  striking  catalogue  of  good  things 
is  drawn  up,  if  we  observe  that  the  Apostle  collects 
all  these  excellences  under  the  notion  of  "  a  virtue  and 
a  praise."  Let  us  consider  how  men  are  trained  to 
progressive  conceptions  of  virtue  and  praise.  For 
virtue  and  praise,  both  name  and  notion,  have  had 
a  large  place  in  men's  minds  and  a  great  influence  on 
their  actions.  How  has  this  influence  been  sustained 
and  made  to  grow  ? 

Men    are    conscious    of  obligations ;    and    they    are 
aware,  more  dimly  or  more  clearly,  that  the  standard 
of  those  obligations  must  exist  somehow  above  them- 
selves.    It  is  a  standard  not  of  their  own  creation,  but 
such  as  claims  them  by  an   antecedent  right.     Yet   if 
each  individual  could  hold  himself  apart,  forming  his 
own  conceptions  of  fit  and  right  for  himself  without 
regard  to  others,  the  standard  would  tend  downwards 
rapidly,  because  moral  judgment  would  be  warped  by 
each  man's  selfishness  and  passion,  excusing  evil  in  his 
own  case  and  putting  it  for  good.     Even  as  it  is,  this 
has  taken  place  only  too  widely.     But  yet  the  tendency 
is  powerfully  counteracted  by  the  fact  that  men  do  not 
exist,   nor  form  their   notions,   in  that  separate  way. 
A   principle  within   them  prompts   them    to  seek  one 
another's  approbation,  and  to  value  one  another's  good 
opinion.     Indeed   the  consciousness  that  what  is  law 
for  me  is  law  for  others,  and  that  they  are  judging  as  well 
as  I,  is  one  of  the  forms  in  which  we  realise  that  duty 
descends  upon  us  all,  from  some  august  and  holy  source* 


iv.  8,  9.]  THE    THINGS   TO  FIX   UPON.  341 

This  principle  of  regarding  the  judgment  and  seeking 
the  approbation  of  others,  has  had  an  enormous  effect 
on  men  and  on  society.  For  though  men  are  skilful 
enough,  in  their  own  case,  in  averting  or  silencing  the 
admonition  of  the  monitor  within,  they  have  little 
reluctance  to  make  full  use  of  their  sense  of  right  in 
scrutinising  one  another.  They  judge,  in  their  thoughts 
about  each  other,  with  far  more  clearness,  shrewdness, 
and  certainty  than  they  do  about  themselves.  Men  do 
in  this  way  make  requirements  of  one  another,  which 
each  of  them  might  be  slow  to  make  from  himself. 
This  is  a  great  operative  force  in  all  cases  ;  and  in 
those  cases  in  which,  in  any  society,  vivid  convictions 
about  truth  and  duty  have  taken  possession  of  some 
minds,  the  principle  we  are  speaking  of  propagates  an 
influence  through  the  whole  mass,  with  effects  that 
are  very  striking. 

This  mutual  criticism  of  men  "  accusing  or  else 
excusing  one  another,"  has  had  a  great  effect  in 
sustaining  what  we  call  common  morals.  But  espe- 
cially let  it  be  observed  that  this  criticism,  and  the 
consciousness  of  it,  stimulating  the  higher  class  of 
minds,  sustains  and  develops  the  finer  perceptions 
of  morality.  There  are  minds  that  eminently  strive 
for  distinction  in  things  that  are  counted  for  a  virtue 
and  a  praise.  And  through  them  is  developed  in  the 
general  mind  the  approving  perception  of  more  delicate 
shades  of  worthy  conduct,  which  in  a  coarser  age  were 
unperceived  or  unheeded.     These  come   up   in  men's 


342  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

mutual  judgments ;  they  are  scrutinised  ;  they  interest 
the  mind  and  take  hold  of  it.  So,  whether  in  the  case 
of  those  who  begin  to  pay  respect  to  such  forms  of 
good  because  they  perceive  that  others  approve  of  them, 
or  in  the  case  of  those  who,  when  those  forms  of  good 
are  thus  presented,  perceive  a  worth  in  them  and  take  a 
pride  in  living  up  to  them  for  their  own  sake, — in  both 
cases,  the  creating  and  sustaining  of  the  higher  standard 
depends  on  the  principle  we  have  now  before  us. 

Thus  there  arises,  for  example,  the  code  of  honour, 
the  fine  perception  of  what  is  socially  right,  becoming, 
and  graceful.  Men,  no  doubt,  are  always  to  be  found 
who  cultivate  the  nicest  sense  of  this,  not  from  a  mere 
desire  that  others  should  know  it,  but  because  they  see 
it  to  be  desirable  in  itself,  and  because  they  shun  the 
sense  of  inward  disgrace  that  follows  when  they  fall 
below  their  own  standard.  Yet  it  is  the  process  of 
mutual  criticism  which  develops  the  consciousness,  and 
it  is  this  which,  on  the  whole,  sustains  it. 

Thus  we  find  in  the  world  not  merely  a  sense  of 
duty,  but  something  that  has  spurred  men  on  to  things 
counted  for  a  virtue  and  a  praise.  Outside  of  all 
Christian  influences,  wonderful  examples  are  found 
of  self-sacrificing  devotion  to  the  noble  and  the  true. 
Men  have  eagerly  pursued  the  nicest  discriminations  of 
duty  and  honour,  that  they  might  be,  and  might  show 
themselves  to  be,  accomplished,  finished,  not  merely  in 
some  things,  but  in  whatever  things  were  counted  to  be 
the  proper  tokens  of  a  noble  mind. 


iv.  8,  9.]  THE   THINGS    TO   FIX   UPON.  343 

Well  now,  the  Apostle  is  not  shutting  out  from  his 
plan  of  mental  life  the  attainments  made  in  this  way  in 
the  true  or  the  good,  even  apart  from  Christian  teach- 
ing. Far  less  is  he  excluding  the  human  social  method, 
in  which  mind  whets  mind,  and  one  stirs  another  to 
discern  and  appropriate  what  is  for  a  virtue  and  for  a 
praise.  He  supposes  this  mode  of  influence  to  go  on 
in  Christianity  more  successfully  than  ever.  And  he 
is  not  at  all  excluding  the  natural  life  of  men  ;  for  that 
is  the  scene,  and  that  yields  the  materials,  for  the 
whole  process.  But  he  does  suppose  that  now  all  old 
attainment  shall  be  set  in  a  new  light,  and  acquire  a 
new  life  and  grace,  and  that  new  attainment  shall  come 
wonderfully  into  view  by  reason  of  the  new  element 
which  for  us  has  entered  into  the  situation.  And  what 
is  this  element  ?  Is  it  that  we  recognise  around  us 
a  society  of  Christians  with  whom  we  share  a  higher 
standard,  and  with  whom  we  can  give  and  take  the 
contagion  of  a  nobler  conception  of  life  ?  Yes,  no 
doubt ;  but  far  before  that,  the  great  new  element  in 
the  situation  is  the  Lord — in  whom  we  trust  and 
rejoice. 

It  is  always  human  duty  to  have  regard  to  the  will 
of  God,  however  it  may  reach  us.  But  when  you  are 
called  to  know  the  Lord  and  to  rejoice  in  Him,  when 
He  vouchsafes  Himself  to  be  yours,  when  you  begin  to 
enjoy  His  peace,  and  to  walk  with  Him  in  love,  and  to 
have  it  for  your  hope  to  be  with  Him  for  ever,  then 
you  are  placed  in  a  ne-w  relation  to   Him.     And  it  is 


344  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHJPPIANS. 

such  a  near  and  dear  relation  on  both  sides  that  much 
may  be  expected  from  you  in  it.     If  this  be  so,  you  are 
now  deahng  with  Him  always ;  not  merely  in  direct  acts 
of  worship,  but  in  your  thoughts,  your  feelings,  your 
words,  your  business,  your  common  intercourse  with 
men,  and  all  your  daily  life,  you  walk  with  Him.     You 
cannot  repudiate  having  so  much  to  do  with  Him,  un- 
less you  will  repudiate  your  Christianity.     Then,  if  so, 
something  new  is  expected.     A  new  test  of  the  becom- 
ing, of  that  which  is  for  a  virtue  and  for  a  praise,  has 
come  into  operation,  and  has  become  intelligible  to  you  ; 
and  it  is  a  test  of  new  delicacy  and  new  force.     It 
is   expected    we    should    recognise   it.       Not    now   the 
mutual  judgments  merely  of  erring  men,  but  His  mind 
and  His  will,  what  He  delights  in  and  approves, — this 
begins  to  solicit  us  and  press  upon  us,  for  we  walk  with 
Christ.     That  this  "  walk  "  of  ours  may  escape  being 
mean,  coarse,  offensive,  we  have  great  lessons  to  learn. 
We  have  to  learn  what,  in  His  judgment,  as  seen  by 
His  eye,  as  tried  by  the  sensibilities  of  His  heart,  are 
the  things  that  are  true  and  venerable  and  just,  what 
with  Him  counts  for  a  virtue  and  a  praise. 

And  here,  indeed,  is  our  crown.  The  crown  of 
honour  which  man  cast  away  when  sin  gained  him, 
was  the  approbation  of  the  Lord.  But  now  we  are  set 
on  afresh  to  seek  it,  testing  our  ways  by  the  perception 
of  that  which  He  approves  ;  or,  on  the  other  hand, 
what  He  counts  to  be  mean  and  degrading,  fit  to  be 
recoiled  from  and  rejected.     It  is  our  calling  (whatever 


iv.  8, 9.]  THE   THINGS    TO   FIX   UPON.  345 

our  attainment  may  be)  to  be  more  sensitive  to  the 
nicest  touches  of  truth  and  honour  towards  our  Lord 
than  ever  we  were  towards  men.  And  this  does  not 
apply  only  to  some  narrow  field  of  life.  It  goes 
through  all  relations,  up  to  God  and  Christ,  and  out 
through  all  duties  and  ties.  The  great  calling  reaches 
wide  and  far ;  it  is  very  high  and  noble :  we  cannot 
pretend  to  disclaim  it,  unless  we  disclaim  the  Lord. 
This  way  lies  God's  crown.  Win  it ;  wear  it ;  let  no 
man  take  thy  crown. 

When  our  Lord's  mind  and  heart  are  said  to  be 
the  test,  this  does  not  exclude  our  profiting  by  our 
fellows,  accepting  the  admonition  contained  in  human 
judgments,  and  especially  in  those  of  Christian  people. 
Great  good  comes  to  us  in  such  channels.  Only  now^ 
the  judgment  of  our  fellows  is  to  refer  itself  always  to 
a  further  standard  ;  and  a  new  Presence  brings  new 
tenderness  and  grace,  new  depth  and  significance,  to 
every  suggestion  of  right  feeling  and  worthy  life.  This 
is  the  light  and  this  the  influence  under  which  we  are 
to  learn  what  shall  be  counted  for  a  virtue  and  for  a 
praise.  And  we  must  bend  our  mind  to  tJiink  upon  //, 
if  we  are  to  learn  our  lesson. 

We  must  think  upon  it.  For,  on  the  one  hand,  it  is 
not  "some  things,"  but  "whatsoever  things."  What 
should  we  say  of  a  man  who  proposed  in  his  dealings 
with  others  to  do  "  some  things  "  that  are  honourable, 
but  not  all  things,  not  "  whatsoever  things  "  ?  And,  on 
the  other  hand,  we  may  be  further  off  from  even  a  small 


546  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE   PHIUPPIANS. 


measure  of  attainment  in  this  field  than  we  are  disposed 
to  think.  Christians  who,  as  to  all  social  excellence,  as 
that  is  commonly  understood  between  man  and  man, 
are  unexceptionable,  may  be  sadly  blind  to  the  require- 
ments of  an  honourable  walk  with  God  ;  may  be  sadly 
wanting  even  in  the  conception  of  what  is  due  in  all 
love  and  honour  to  Christ,  and  to  men  for  His  sake. 
Men  may  be  the  soul  of  honour  and  delicacy  in  their 
ways,  judged  from  the  world's  point  of  view;  yet  not 
far  from  a  savage  coarseness  in  the  manner  of  their  life 
judged  by  Christ's  standard.  We  would  not  need- 
lessly wound  another's  feelings;  but  with  what  in- 
difference have  we  ''grieved  the  Spirit."  We  would 
shrink  from  saying  anything  to  our  fellows  that  is 
deceitful  and  hypocritical  :  can  we  say  as  much  for  our 
prayers  ?  In  our  common  life  we  maintain  truth  in 
the  ordinary  sense  between  men ;  but  do  we  loyally 
express  and  act  out  the  truth  by  which  God's  children 
live  in  our  speech  and  action  among  men  ?  Is  there 
that  fine  congruity  of  our  bearing  to  the  truth  we  live 
by,  which  becomes  a  child  of  God  ? 

We  are  greatly  hindered  here  by  the  assumption 
we  make,  that  when  we  have  mastered  the  form  of 
knowledge  concerning  the  will  of  God,  we  then  know 
all  about  our  calling.  It  is  a  great  delusion.  We 
must  not  only  sit  down  at  the  feet  of  Christ  to  learn 
from  Him ;  but  also,  with  a  watchful  eye  on  the  phases 
of  life,  catching  the  lessons  which  things  and  men 
afford,  we  must  be  trained  to  know  and  sharpened  to 


iv.  8,  9.]  THE   THINGS   TO  FIX    UPON.  347 


loving  discernment  as  to  our  Master's  mind,  and  so, 
as  to  what  is  honourable  and  right-minded,  refined  and 
noble,  in  a  walk  with  God.  We  do  not  easily  emerge 
from  the  meanness  of  our  spirits  ;  we  do  not  easily 
shake  off  that  insensibility  to  what  is  spiritually  fair 
and  fit,  on  which  the  angels  look  down  with  pity  and 
wonder. 

Therefore,  says  the  Apostle,  tJiiiik  on  these  things, 
the  things  which  in  the  Lord's  kingdom  and  under  the 
Lord's  eye  are  well-pleasing,  and  count  for  a  virtue 
and  a  praise  ;  think  on  those  things  which  are  related 
to  His  esteem,  and  to  the  esteem  of  persons  who  learn 
of  Him,  as  various  excellences  are  to  the  common 
judgment  of  the  world.  Do  so,  for  here  you  are  close 
to  the  genuinely  and  supremely  true  and  good  ;  and  this, 
as  was  said  before,  is  your  crown. 

The  Apostle  is  thinking  of  a  perception  of  duty  and 
privilege  attained  not  merely  by  studying  a  catalogue  of 
virtues,  but  by  a  far  finer  and  more  living  process — by 
life  that  is  instinct  with  observant  watchfulness,  that 
is  frank  in  self-criticism,  that  is  recipient  of  the  light 
flashing  from  the  experience  and  the  censure  of  others  : 
all  this  under  constant  regard  to  the  Lord,  and  lead- 
ing us  into  fuller  sympathy  with  Him. 

That  this  is  so,  appears  from  the  Apostle's  way  of 
arranging  the  particulars  of  his  exhortation.  He  does 
not  merely  desire  his  disciples  to  discern  what  is  right 
in  general :  but  he  would  have  them  grow  into  a  vital 
knowledge,    so   as  to   feel   the  right    in  those  matters 


348  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

where    the    shading    becomes  deUcate ;  where    it  may 
be  difficult  to  distinguish  argumentatively  an  absolute 
right  and  wrong,  but  where  a  mind  purged  and  trained 
in   the   Master's   school  can  well  discern  a  difference. 
"  Whatsoever  things  are  true  " — which  includes  not  only 
veracity  and  fidelity,  but  also  whatever  in  conduct  and 
temper  God's  truth  requires  as  agreeable  to  itself;  and 
then  "  Whatsoever  things  are  venerable  " — the  character 
that  emerges  when  all  that  is  congruous  to  truth,  in  its 
finest  filaments  and  ramifications,  has  been  developed, 
and  has  assumed  its  own  place.     "  Whatsoever  things 
are  just" — rightfully  due  on  all  hands  to  God  and  to  man; 
and  then  ''  Whatsoever  things  are  pure" — the  character 
that  recoils  from  all   that   sullies,    from    the  smallest 
shade   or  infection   of  iniquity.     *'  Whatsoever  things 
are  lovely  " — the  dear  or  amiable,  whatever  draws  out 
love,   cherishes   it,    befits   it ;  and    then   '^  Whatsoever 
things  are  of  good  report  " — actions  that  can  hardly  be 
more  discriminatingly  classified  than  by  saying  that  the 
heart  is  pleased  to  hear  of  them  ;  it  confesses  that  they 
are  of  a  good  name,  of  a  welcome  sound  ;  they  are  like 
some  delicate  sound  or  odour  on  which  you  dwell  with , 
dehght,  but  cannot  definitely  describe  it.     In  a  word, 
^*  If  there  be  any  virtue,  and   if  there  be  any  praise, 
think  on  these  things."     Study  them,  look  out  for  them, 
learn  to  recognise  them,  to  know  their  worth,  to  pursue 
them  lovingly  through  all  their  manifestations. 

Thus,  let  it  be   said  once  more,  the  Apostle  is   not 
open  to  the  objection  that  he  calls  us  to  a  mere  retreat 


iv.  8,  9.]  THE    THINGS    TO  FIX   UPON.  349 

from  energetic  life.  To  such  a  call  men  have  always 
replied,  that  they  find  in  themselves  capacities  wonder- 
fully adapted  to  grapple  with  life,  and  to  do  so  with 
interest  and  with  energy.  Virtually  the  Apostle  says, 
Yes,  true  ;  and  life  has  aspects  to  interest  the  mind, 
and  results  to  engage  the  will,  which  are  its  noble  and 
its  imperative  possibilities  :  for  the  followers  of  Christ 
these  become  dominant ;  they  afford  noble  scope  for 
all  human  faculty  ;  and  all  forms  of  life  are  dignified 
as  they  become  subservient  to  these  supreme  interests 
and  aims.  Now^  lay  forth  the  care  and  pains  that 
fastened  before  on  mere  joy  and  sorrow,  hope  and 
fear,  on  a  certain  thinking  and  making  account  of  the 
true,  the  venerable,  the  just,  the  pure,  the  lovely,  that 
which  is  of  good  report.  Reckon  what  they  are  ;  search 
out  their  nature ;  make  them  your  serious  object. 
"  O  man  of  God,  flee  those  things  ;  but  follow  after 
righteousness,  godliness,  faith,  love,  patience,  meek- 
ness." 

But  progress  is  not  to  be  made  in  this  line  by  mere 
subtle  refining  and  contemplation.  If  there  was  any 
danger  that  the  Apostle's  call  to  "think"  might  be 
interpreted  that  way,  presently  it  is  corrected.  The 
thinking  is  to  be  practical  thinking,  bending  itself  to 
action.  "  What  things  ye  have  received  and  learned  " 
— those  practical  points  in  which  the  xVpostle  always 
taught  his  Gentile  converts  to  put  to  proof  the  grace  of 
Christ ;  and  "  What  ye  have  heard  and  seen  in  me  " — 
— in  a  man  poor,  tried,  persecuted,  a  man  whose  life 


J!) 


o  THE  EPISTLE   TO    THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


was  rough  and  real,  who  knew  weakness  and  sorrow, 
who  bore  heavy  burdens,  that  were  not  proudly  paraded, 
but  which  brought  him  lowly  and  weary  to  Christ's  feet, 
— these  things  do.  That  is  the  road  to  the  attainments 
on  which  I  bid  you  think. 

"  And  the  God  of  peace  shall  be  with  you."  In  those 
ways  (for  they  are  His  own  ways)  God  walks  with 
men  ;  and  peace  with  God,  spreading  out  into  peace 
with  men,  becomes  the  atmosphere  in  which  such 
wayfarers    move. 


GIFTS  AND  SACRIFICES. 


35* 


"  But  1  rejoice  in  the  Lord  greatly,  that  now  at  length  ye  have 
revived  your  thought  for  me ;  wherein  ye  did  indeed  take  thought, 
but  ye  lacked  opportunity.  Not  that  1  speak  in  respect  of  want :  for 
I  have  learned,  in  whatsoever  state  I  am,  therein  to  be  content.  I  know 
how  to  be  abased,  and  I  know  also  how  to  abound  :  in  everything 
and  in  all  things  have  I  learned  the  secret  both  to  be  filled  and  to  be 
hungry,  both  to  abound  and  to  be  in  want.  I  can  do  all  things  in 
Him  that  strengtheneth  me.  Howbeit  ye  did  well,  that  ye  had  fellow- 
ship with  my  affliction.  And  ye  yourselves  also  know,  ye  Philippians, 
that  in  the  beginning  of  the  gospel,  when  I  departed  from  Macedonia, 
no  Church  had  fellowship  with  me  in  the  matter  of  giving  and  receiving, 
but  ye  only;  for  even  in  Thessalonica  ye  sent  once  and  again  unto 
my  need.  Not  that  I  seek  for  the  gift ;  but  I  seek  for  the  fruit  that 
increaseth  to  your  account.  But  I  have  all  things,  and  abound  :  I  am 
filled,  having  received  from  Epaphroditus  the  things  that  came  from 
you,  an  odour  of  a  sweet  smell,  a  sacrifice  acceptable,  well-pleasing  to 
God.  And  my  God  shall  fulfil  every  need  of  yours  according  to  His 
riches  in  glory  in  Christ  Jesus.  Now  unto  our  God  and  Father  be 
the  glory  for  ever  and  ever.     Amen. 

"  Salute  every  saint  in  Christ  Jesus.  The  brethren  which  are  with 
me  salute  you.  All  the  saints  salute  you,  especially  they  that  are 
of  Caesar's  household. 

"The  grace  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  be  with  your  spirit." — Phil. 
iv.  10-23  (R.V.J. 


352 


CHAPTER    XIX. 

GIFTS  AND  SACRIFICES. 

THE  Apostle  had  urged  joy  in  the  Lord,  and  a 
moderation  visible  to  all  men.  If  any  one 
supposes  that  in  doing  so  he  recommended  a  stoical 
temper,  insensible  to  the  impressions  of  passing  things, 
the  passage  which  now  comes  before  us  will  correct 
that  error.  It  shows  us  how  the  Apostle  could  ''  rejoice 
in  the  Lord,"  and  yet  reap  great  satisfaction  from 
providential  incidents.  '*  I  rejoiced  in  the  Lord  greatly, 
that  now  at  last  you  have  revived  your  thought  for 
me,"  or,  as  in  the  older  version,  "  that  your  care  for  me 
has  flourished  again." 

Worldly  eagerness,  and  worldly  care  and  anxiety 
about  persons  and  things,  are  rebuked  by  the  spirit  of 
rejoicing  in  the  Lord.  But  the  persons  and  the  things 
about  us  all  have  a  connection  with  the  Lord,  if  we 
have  eyes  to  see  it,  and  hearts  to  mark  it  ;  and  that  is 
the  chief  thing  about  them.  They  are  in  the  Lord's 
world,  the  Lord  calls  us  to  have  to  do  with  them  :  as 
for  the  persons,  they  are,  some  of  them,  the  Lord's 
servants,  and  all  of  them  the  Lord  calls  us  to  love  and 

353  23 


354  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHIUPPIANS. 


to  benefit ;  as  for  the  things,  the  Lord  appoints  our  lot 
among  them,  and  they  are  full  of  a  meaning  which  He 
puts  into  them.  So  regard  to  the  Lord  and  a  spirit 
of  rejoicing  in  Him  may  pervade  our  earthly  life.  The 
worldly  eagerness  and  worldly  care  must  be  controlled. 
There  is  no  avoiding  that  conflict.  But  now — shall  we 
in  faith  give  ourselves  to  learn  the  true  rejoicing  in  the 
Lord  ?  If  not,  our  Christianity  must  be  at  best  low 
and  comfortless.  But  if  we  do,  we  shall  be  rewarded 
by  a  growing  liberty.  The  more  that  joy  possesses  us, 
the  more  will  it  give  occasion  to  the  finest  and  freest 
play  of  feeling  in  reference  to  passing  things  ;  and  some 
of  these  which,  on  other  accounts,  might  seem  insigni- 
ficant, will  begin  to  yield  us  an  abounding  consolation. 

These  Philippians,  who  had  given  early  proof  of 
attachment  to  the  gospel,  had  lately,  for  some  reason  or 
other,  been  unable,  ''  lacked  opportunity,"  to  minister 
to  the  wants  of  Paul.  Now  the  winter,  whatever  it  was, 
that  hindered  the  expression  of  their  goodwill  was  gone, 
and  their  care  of  Paul  flourished  again.  Did  the 
Apostle  think  it  needful  to  freeze  up  the  feelings  of 
satisfaction  which  this  incident  awakened  ?  No  :  but 
in  his  case  those  feelings,  having  spiritual  elevation, 
became  so  much  the  more  deep  and  glad.  He  rejoiced 
greatly  in  this ;  and  still,  he  was  rejoicing  in  the  Lord. 
Let  us  mark  how  this  comes  out  both  when  we  consider 
what  was  notih^  spring  of  his  gladness,  and  what  it  was. 

"  Not  that   I  speak   in    respect    of  want."      It  was 
not  the  change  from  want  to  comparative  plenty  that 


iv.  10-23.]  GIFTS  AND  SACRIFICES.  355 

explained  the  nature  of  his  feeUngs.  Yet  he  evidently 
implies  that  he  had  been  in  want,  strange  as  that  may 
seem  in  a  city  where  there  was  a  Christian  congre- 
gation. But  though  the  removal  of  that  pressure  would 
no  doubt  be  thankfully  taken,  yet  for  a  man  whose 
gladness  was  in  the  Lord  no  mere  change  of  that  kind 
would  lead  to  ''  rejoicing  greatly."  "  I  speak  not  in 
respect  of  want  :  I  have  learned,  in  whatsoever  state  I 
am,  therewith  to  be  content.  I  know  how  to  be  abased, 
and  I  know  also  how  to  abound  :  in  everything  and  in 
all  things  have  I  learned  the  secret  (have  been  initiated) 
both  to  be  filled  and  to  be  hungry,  both  to  abound  and 
to  be  in  want.  I  can  do  all  things  through  Him  that 
strengtheneth  me." 

"  Therewith  to  be  content."  Paul  had  learned  to  be 
so  minded  that,  in  trying  circumstances,  he  did  not 
anxiously  cast  about  for  help,  but  was  sufficed  :  his 
desires  were  brought  down  to  the  facts  of  his  condition. 
In  that  state  he  counted  himself  to  have  enough.  He 
knew  how  to  suit  himself  to  abasement,  that  common 
experience  of  the  indigent  and  friendless ;  and  he 
knew  how  to  suit  himself  to  abundance,  when  that 
was  sent  :  each  as  a  familiar  state  in  which  he  made 
himself  at  home — not  overgrieved  or  overjoyed,  not 
greatly  elevated  or  greatly  depressed.  "  I  have  been 
instructed,"  or  initiated  (the  word  used  by  the 
heathen  of  introduction  to  the  mysteries),  "  not  only  into 
the  experience  of  those  conditions,  but  into  the  way  of 
taking  kindly  with   them   both."     Mark  how  his  words 


;56  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHIPPIANS. 


follow  one  another  :  "  I  have  learned  " — been  put 
through  a  course  of  teaching  and  have  had  a  teacher ; 
*'  I  know  " — it  has  become  familiar  to  me,  I  understand 
it ;  "I  am  initiated  " — if  there  is  a  secret  in  it,  some- 
thing hidden  from  the  natural  man,  I  have  been  led  into 
that,  out  and  in,  through  and  through. 

If  we   would    know   by   what   discipline    the   Lord 
trained  Paul  to  this  mind,  we  may  listen  to  what  Paul 
himself  says  of  it  (i  Cor.  iv.  9-13)  :  "I  think  God  hath 
set  forth  us  the  apostles  last  of  all,  as  men  doomed  to 
death  :  for  we  are  made  a  spectacle  unto  the  world.  .  .  . 
Even  unto  this  present  hour  we  both  hunger,  and  thirst, 
and  are  naked,  and  are  buffeted,  and  have  no  certain 
dwelling-place  ;    and  we   toil,  working  with  our  own 
hands :  being  reviled,  we  bless ;  being  persecuted,  we 
endure ;  being  defamed,  we  entreat :  we  are  made  as 
the  filth    of  the  world,   the  offscouring  of  all  things, 
unto  this  day "   (see  also   2   Cor.  vi.   4,   xi.   23).     If, 
again,  we  would  know  the  manner  of  his   training  in 
such  experiences,  take  2  Cor.  xii.  8,  9  :  "  Concerning  this 
thing  I  besought  thrice  that  it  might  depart  from  me. 
And  He  said  unto  me.  My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee  ; 
for  My  strength  is  made  perfect  in  weakness.     Most 
gladly  therefore  will  I  rather  glory  in  my  infirmities." 
Also  how  his  faith  wrought  and  gathered   strength  in 
all  these,  we  may  see  from  Rom.  viii.  24-28  :  *'  We  are 
saved  by  hope.  ...  If  we  hope  for  that  which  we  see  not, 
then  do  we  with  patience  wait  for  it.     Also  the  Spirit 
helpeth  our  infirmity :  for  we  know  not  how  to  pray  as 


iv.  10-23.]  GIFTS  AND  SACRIFICES.  357 


we  ought;  but  the  Spirit  Himself  maketh  intercession 
for  us.  .  .  .  And  we  know  that  all  things  work  to- 
gether for  good  to  them  that  love  God."  So  "  being 
strengthened  with  all  might,  according  to  His  glorious 
power,  to  all  patience  and  longsuffering  with  joyfulness  " 
(Col.  i.  11),  he  was  able  to  say,  "  I  can  do  all  things 
through  Christ  which  strengtheneth  me." 

This  was  the  course,  and  this  the  fruit,  of  Paul's 
biography.  But  each  Christian  has  his  own  life,  the 
tenor  and  the  upshot  of  which  should  not  be  wholly 
estranged  from   Paul's. 

Now  what  it  was  that  did  move  him  so  to  rejoice  is 
explained  when  he  speaks  of  the  Philippians  "  holding 
fellowship  with  his  affliction "  ;  and,  again,  when  he 
says,  "  I  desire  fruit  that  may  abound  to  your  account." 
He  saw  in  their  succour  the  blessed  unity  of  Christ's 
living  Church,  the  members  having  mutual  interest,  so 
that  if  one  suffers  all  suffer.  The  Philippians  claimed 
a  right  to  take  part  as  fellow-members  in  the  Apostle's 
state  and  wants,  and  to  communicate  with  his  affliction. 
And  this  was  only  a  continuation  of  their  former 
practice  in  the  beginning  of  the  gospel.  This,  as  a 
fruit  of  Christ's  work  and  of  the  presence  of  His  Spirit, 
refreshed  the  Apostle.  It  was  a  manifestation  in  the 
sphere  of  temporal  things  of  the  working  of  a  high 
principle,  communion  with  the  common  Lord.  And  it 
betokened  the  progress  of  the  work  of  grace,  in  that  the 
Philippians  were  not  weary  in  well-doing.  So  it  was 
fruit  that  abounded  to  their  account. 


358  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHIPPIANS. 

It  may  be  noticed  that  the  directness  and  frankness 
of  the  Apostle's  speech  to  the  PhiHppians  on  these 
matters  convey  a  testimony  to  the  generous  Christian 
feeHng  which  prevailed  among  them.  He  speaks  as 
one  who  feared  no  misconstruction.  He  does  not  fear 
that  they  will  either  mistake  his  meaning  or  do  wrong 
to  his  motives  ;  as  he,  on  the  other  side,  puts  no  other 
than  a  loving  construction  upon  their  action.  He  could 
not  so  trust  all  the  Churches.  In  some  there  was  so 
little  of  large  Christian  sympathy  that  a  complaining 
tone  in  such  matters  was  forced  on  him.  But  in  the 
case  of  the  Philippians  he  has  no  difficulty  in  interpret- 
ing their  gift  simply  as  embodying  their  earnest  claim 
to  be  counted  "  partakers  of  the  benefit,"  and  therefore 
entitled  to  bear  the  burdens  and  alleviate  the  sufferings 
of  Paul.  Gladly  he  admits  and  welcomes  this  claim. 
It  is  worth  observing  that  the  way  of  giving  vent  to 
Christian  feeling  here  exemplified  was  apparent  at 
Philippi  from  the  very  first.  Not  only  did  it  appear 
when  Paul  departed  from  Macedonia  (ver.  15);  but, 
before  that,  the  earliest  convert,  Lydia,  struck  the  key- 
note,— "  If  ye  judge  me  faithful  in  the  Lord,  come  into 
my  house"  (Acts  xvi.  15).  Both  in  individuals  and  in 
Churches,  the  style  of  feeling  and  action  embraced  at 
the  outset  of  Christianity,  under  the  first  impressions, 
often  continues  to  prevail  long  after. 

Now,  in  virtue  of  this  HberaHty,   Paul  had  all  and 
abounded.     He  had  desired  to  see  the  old  spirit  flourish 


iv.  10-23.J  GIFTS  AND  SACRIFICES.  359 


again,  and  he  had  his  wish.  "  1  have  all  :  I  feel  greatly 
enriched  since  I  received  the  things  sent  by  Epaphro- 
ditus."  What  gladdened  him  was  not  the  outward 
comfort  which  these  gifts  supplied,  but  much  more,  the 
spiritual  meaning  they  carried  in  their  bosom.  Let  us 
see  how  he  reads  that  meaning. 

This  gift  comes  to  him.  As  it  comes,  what  is  it  ? 
From  its  destination  and  its  motives  it  takes  on  a 
blessed  character.  It  is  "  an  odour  of  a  sweet  smell, 
a  sacrifice  acceptable,  well-pleasing  unto  God."  This 
was  what  came  to  the  Apostle  :  something  that  was 
in  a  peculiar  manner  God's  own,  something  which  He 
regarded,  set  value  on,  and  counted  precious.  Further, 
it  turned  out  to  be  something  in  connection  with  which 
the  assurance  ought  to  go  forth,  "  My  God  shall  fulfil 
every  need  of  yours."  Ihey  had  ministered  to  Paul's 
need,  in  faith,  love,  thankfulness,  and  loyal  care  of 
Christ's  servant.  Christ  counted  it  done  to  Him  :  as 
such  He  would  surely  repay  it,  supplying  their  need 
with  that  considerate  liberality  which  it  becomes  Him 
to  exhibit.  Observe,  then,  the  position  in  which  the 
Apostle  finds  himself.  He  is  himself  the  object  of 
Christian  kindness;  affections  wrought  in  the  Philip- 
pians  by  the  Holy  Ghost  are  clinging  to  him  and  caring 
for  him.  He  is  also  one  so  linked  with  God's  great 
cause,  that  offerings  sent  to  him,  in  the  spirit  described, 
become  an  "  odour  of  a  sweet  smell,  an  acceptable 
sacrifice  to  the  Lord."  Also  this  supply  of  his  need 
is  so  directly  a  service  done  to  Christ,  that  when  it  is 


36o  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 

done,  God,  as  it  were,  stands  forth  directly  on  His 
servant's  behalf :  He  will  repay  it,  supplying  the  need 
of  those  who  supplied  His  servant.  Poor  though  Paul 
may  be,  and  sometimes  sad,  yet  see  how  the  resources 
of  God  must  be  pledged  to  requite  the  kindness  done  to 
him.  All  this  made  him  very  glad.  His  heart  warmed 
under  it.  What  a  blessed,  happy,  secure,  and,  looking 
forward,  what  a  hopeful  state  was  his  !  This  came 
home  to  him  all  at  once  with  the  Philippians'  gift.  No 
wonder  that  he  says,  '^  I  have  all  and  abound." 

If  any  one  chooses  to  say  that  all  this  was  true  about 
the  Apostle,  and  he  might  have  known  it,  apart  from  the 
gift,  and  even  if  it  had  never  come,  that  may  be  a  kind 
of  truth,  but  it  signifies  exactly  nothing  to  the  purpose. 
It  is  one  thing  to  have  a  doctrine  which  one  knows  :  it  is 
another  thing  to  have  the  Holy  Spirit  setting  it  home 
with  a  warmth  and  glory  that  fills  the  man  with  joy. 
The  Spirit  of  God  may  do  this  without  means,  but  often 
He  uses  means,  and,  indeed,  what  we  esteem  little  means; 
by  little  things  carrying  home  great  impressions,  as  out 
of  the  mouths  of  babes  and  sucklings  He  perfects  praise. 
When  a  child  of  God  is  cast  down,  no  one  can  tell  out 
of  how  small  a  thing  the  Spirit  of  God  may  cause  to 
arise  a  peace  that  passeth  all  understanding. 

Christianity  confers  great  weight  and  dignity  on  little 
things.  This  gift,  not  in  itself  very  great,  passing 
between  Christians  at  PhiHppi  and  an  Apostle  im- 
prisoned at  Rome,  belongs  after  all  to  an  unearthly 
sphere.     Paul    sees    its    connection    with    all    spiritual 


iv.  10-23.J  GIFTS  AND  SACRIFICES.  361 

things,  and  with  the  heavenly  places  where  Christ  is. 
And  it  comes  to  him  carrying  a  rich  meaning,  preaching 
everlasting  consolation  and  good  hope  through  grace. 

Mark,  again,  the  illustration  of  the  truth  that  the 
members  have  need  of  one  another,  and  are  compacted 
by  that  which  every  joint  supplieth,  according  to  the 
effectual  working  in  the  measure  of  every  part.  The 
strong  may  benefit  by  the  weak,  as  well  as  the  weak 
by  the  strong.  This  Apostle,  who  could  do  all  things 
through  Christ  who  strengthens  him,  might  be  very  far 
more  advanced  as  a  Christian  than  any  one  in  Philippi. 
Possibly  there  was  nothing  any  of  them  could  say,  no 
advice  they  could  tender  to  him  in  words,  that  would 
have  been  of  material  benefit  to  the  Apostle.  But  that 
which,  following  the  impulse  of  their  faith  and  love, 
they  did,  ivas  of  material  benefit.  It  filled  his  heart  with 
a  joyful  sense  of  the  relation  in  which  he  stood  to  them, 
to  Christ,  to  God.  It  welled  up  for  him  like  a  water- 
spring  in  a  dry  land.  No  one  can  tell  how  it  may 
have  conduced  to  enable  him  to  go  forward  with  more 
liberty  and  power,  testifying  in  Rome  the  gospel  of  God. 

Nor  must  we  omit  the  comfort  to  all  who  serve  God 
in  their  generation  arising  from  the  view  which  the 
Apostle  is  here  led  to  take.  There  may  be  trials  from 
without  and  trials  from  within.  Still  God  careth  for 
His  servant.  God  will  provide  for  him  out  of  that 
which  is  peculiarly  His  own.  God  so  identifies  him 
with  Himself,  that  He  must  needs  requite  all  who 
befriend  him  out  of  His  own  riches  in  glory. 


362  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


So  far  for  the  bearing  of  the  case  on  Paul.  We  have 
still  to  look  a  little  into  the  view  given  of  this  Philip- 
pian  gift  on  its  own  account.  It  is  emphatically  called 
a  sweet  savour,  an  offering  acceptable  and  well-pleasing 
to  God.  We  have  seen  already  (ch.  ii.  17)  that  believers 
are  called  upon  to  offer  themselves  as  a  sacrifice ;  and 
now  we  see  also  that  their  obedience,  or  t'hat  which 
they  do  for  Christ's  sake,  is  reckoned  as  an  offering  to 
God.  So  it  is  said  (Heb.  xiii.  16)  "to  do  good  and  to 
communicate  forget  not,  for  with  such  sacrifices  God 
is  well  pleased."  It  need  hardly  be  said  they  are  not 
sacrifices  to  atone  for  sin.  But  they  are  offerings 
accepted  by  God,  at  His  altar,  from  His  children's  hands. 
They  suitably  express  both  the  gratitude  of  believers  to 
God,  and  the  sincerity  of  their  Christianity  in  general. 
God  grants  us  this  way  of  expressing  the  earnestness 
of  our  regard  to  Him :  and  He  expects  that  we  shall 
gladly  avail  ourselves  of  it  ;  our  obedience  is  to  assume 
the  character  of  a  glad  and  willing  offering.  The 
expressions  used  by  the  Apostle  here  assure  us  that 
there  is  a  Divine  complacency  in  the  manifestation  of 
this  spirit  on  the  part  of  God's  children.  The  heart  of 
Him  who  has  revealed  Himself  in  Christ,  of  Him  who 
rested  and  was  refreshed  on  the  seventh  day  over  His 
good  and  fair  works,  counts  for  a  sweet  savour,  accept- 
able and  well-pleasing,  the  works  of  faith  and  love 
willingly  done  for  His  name's  sake. 

In  this  connection  it  is  fit  we  should  remember  that  the 
view  we  take  of  money,  and  the  use  we  make  of  it,  are 


iv.  10-23.]  GIFTS  AND  SACRIFICES.  363 


referred  to  with  extraordinary  frequency  in  the  New  Tes- 
tament, as  a  decisive  test  of  Christian  sincerity.  This 
feature  of  Bible  teaching  is  very  faintly  realised  by  many. 

The  other  point  noteworthy  in  relation  to  this 
Philippian  gift  is  the  assurance  that  it  shall  be  re- 
compensed. God  will  not  be  unfaithful  to  reward 
their  work  and  labour  of  love,  in  that  they  have 
ministered  to  His  servant. 

We  are  not  to  shrink  from  the  doctrine  of  reward 
because  it  has  been  perverted.  It  is  true  the  good 
works  of  a  Christian  cannot  be  the  foundation  of  his 
title  to  life  eternal.  They  proceed  from  the  grace  of 
God  ;  they  are  very  imperfect  and  mixed  at  their  best. 
Yet  they  are  precious  fruits  of  Christ's  death,  and  of 
God's  grace,  arising  through  the  faith  and  love  of 
souls  renewed  and  liberated.  When  a  penitent  and 
believing  man  is  found  devoting  to  God  what  he  is 
and  has,  doing  so  freely  and  lovingly,  that  is  a 
blessed  thing.  God  sets  value  on  it.  It  is  accepted 
as  fruit  which  the  man  brings,  as  the  offering  which 
he  yields.  The  heart  of  Christ  rejoices  over  it. 
Now  it  is  fit  that  the  value  set  on  this  fruit  should 
be  shown,  and  the  way  God  takes  to  show  it  is 
to  reward  the  service.  Such  a  man  "  shall  in  no 
wise  lose  his  reward."  God  orders  the  administra- 
tion of  His  mercy  so  that  it  really  comes  in  a  way  of 
recompense  for  works  of  faith  and  labours  of  love. 

This  may  well  convince  us  that  the  kindness  of  our 
Father  is  measureless,     lie  omits  nothing  that  can  win 


364  THE  EPISTLE    TO   THE  PHILIPPIANS. 


His  children's  love,  and  bind  them  to  Himself.     Might 
not  those  servants  who  have  gone  furthest  and  done 
most,  feel   it    almost    a    bitter    thing    to    hear    reward 
spoken  of?     For  if  their    service    could    be  far  more 
worthy,  it  could  not  amount  to  an  adequate  expression 
of  gratitude   for  all  their   Father  has   done   for  them. 
Yet  He  will  certainly  reward.    Cups  of  cold  water  given 
to  disciples  shall  have  remembrance  made  of  them,  by 
Him  who  reckons  all  those  gifts  to  be  bestowed  upon 
Himself.    Every  way  God  overwhelms  His  children  with 
His  goodness.     There   is   no   dealing  with   this   God, 
otherwise  than  by  confessing  that  every  way  we  are 
debtors.     It  is  vain  to  think  of  paying  the  debt,  or  re- 
lieving oneself  of  any  of  the  weight  of  obligation.     Only 
we  may  with  all  our  hearts  give  glory  to  Him  to  whom 
we  owe  all. 

Accordingly  the  Apostle  closes  in  a  doxology  :  "  Now 
unto  our  God  and  Father  be  glory  for  ever." 

Among  the  salutations  with  which  the  Epistle  winds 

up,  every  one  must  be  struck  with  that  which  goes  in 

the  name  of  ''  those  of  Caesar's  household."      Bishop 

Lightfoot  has  annexed   to   his   Commentary  an   essay 

on  this  topic,  which  collects,  with  his  usual  skill,  the 

available  information.     It  was  remarked  in  connection 

with  ch.  i.  12,  that  Caesar's  househ'old  was  an  immense 

establishment,    comprehending  thousands   of  persons, 

employed    in    all    sorts    of    functions,    and    composed 

chiefly,  either  of  slaves,  or  of  those  who  had  emerged 

from  slavery  into  the  condition  of  freedmen.     Indica- 


iv.  10-23. J  GIFTS  AND  SACRIFICES.  365 


tions   have  been  gathered   from   ancient   mortuary  in- 
scriptions tending  to  show  that  a  notable    proportion 
of  Christians,  whose  names  are  preserved  in  this  way, 
had  probably  been  connected  with  the  household.     At 
the  end  of  the  first  century,  a  whole   branch    of  the 
Flavian   imperial   family   became  Christian  ;    and   it  is 
possible,  as   indicated   in    an    earlier    page,   that   they 
may  have  done   so   under   the   influence   of  Christian 
servants.      This,     however,    fell    later.     The     Apostle 
wrote  in  Nero's  days.     It  is  certain  that  at  this  time 
singularly  profligate  persons  exercised  great  sway    in 
the  household.     It  is  also  certain  that  powerful  Jewish 
influences  had  got  a  footing  ;  and  these  would   in  all 
likelihood  act  against  the  gospel.     Yet  there  were  also 
Christian  brethren.     We  may  believe  that  Paul's  own 
work  had  operated  notably  to  produce  this  result  (ch. 
i.  12).     At  all  events,  there  they  were.     Amid  all  that 
was  vile   and   unscrupulous,  the  word  of  God  had  its 
course;    men  were    converted   and  were  sanctified  by 
the  washing  of  water  by  the  word.     Then,  as  now,  the 
Lord  gathered  His  elect  from  unlikely  quarters :  how 
secure    soever   the  strong  man's  goods  seemed  to  be, 
his  defences  went  down  before  the  might  of  a  stronger 
than   he.     Probably  the    Christians    in   the   household 
belonged  chiefly  or  exclusively  to  the  lower  grades  of 
the  service,   and   might    be    partly   protected  by   their 
obscurity.     Yet  surely  entanglements  and  perplexities, 
fears  and  sorrows,  must  often  have  been  the  portion  of 
the  saints  of  Nero's  household.     Out  of  all  these  the 


366  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHHIPPIANS. 


Lord  delivered  them.  This  ghmpse  lets  us  see  the 
process  going  on  which  by-and-by  made  so  strange 
a  revolution  in  the  heathen  world.  It  reminds  us  also 
for  what  peculiarities  of  trial  God's  grace  has  been 
found  sufficient. 

"  The  grace  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  be  with  your 
spirit."  This  is  the  parting  benediction ;  certainly  an 
appropriate  one,  for  the  whole  Epistle  breathes  the  same 
atmosphere.  The  Epistle  would  not  fail  of  its  effect, 
if  their  spirit  retained  the  consciousness  of  the  grace  of 
Christ;  if  throughout  their  life  they  owned  its  sway, 
and  felt  its  attraction,  its  charm,  its  power  to  elevate 
and  purify  and  comfort. 

In  following  the  course  of  thought  and  feeling 
which  this  letter  embodies,  we  have  seen  the  Apostle 
touch  various  topics.  They  rise  into  view  as  pastoral 
care,  or  friendly  feeling,  as  outward  circumstances 
suggest  them.  The  demands  of  Christian  friendship, 
the  responsibilities  of  the  Christian  ministry,  the 
trials  of  Christian  endurance  ;  what  is  due  from  an 
apostle,  or  from  a  Church  member ;  how  life  and  death 
are  to  be  confronted ;  what  is  to  be  done  about  dangers 
and  faults  ;  how  pride  and  self-will  are  to  be  judged 
and  remedied ;  how  the  narrow  heart  is  to  be  re- 
buked and  enlarged ;  how  the  life  of  a  disciple  is  to 
become  luminous  and  edifying, — in  reference  to  all, 
and  all  aUke,  he  speaks  from  the  same  central  position, 
and    with    the    same    fulness    of  resource.     In    Christ 


iv.  10-23.]  GIFTS  AND  SACRIFICES.  367 

revealed,  in  Christ  received  and  known,  he  finds  the 
light,  and  the  strength,  and  the  salve,  which  every  case 
requires.  Each  new  demand  unlocks  new  resources, 
new  conceptions  of  goodness  and  of  victory. 

So,  in  one  great  passage,  in  the  third  chapter, 
catching  fire,  as  it  were,  from  the  scorn  with  which 
a  religion  of  externals  fills  him,  he  breaks  forth  into  a 
magnificent  proclamation  of  the  true  Christianity.  He 
celebrates  its  reality  and  intensity  as  life  in  Christ — 
Christ  known,  found,  gained — Christ  in  the  righteous- 
ness of  faith  and  in  the  power  of  resurrection.  He 
depicts  vividly  the  aspiration  and  endeavour  of  that 
life  as  it  continually  presses  onward  from  faith  to 
experience  and  achievement,  as  it  verifies  relations 
to  a  world  unseen,  and  looks  and  hastes  tow^ards  a 
world  to  come.  Then  the  wave  of  thought  and  feeling 
subsides;  but  its  force  is  felt  in  the  last  wavelets  of 
loving  counsel  that  ripple  to  the  shore. 

One  feels  that  for  Paul,  who  was  rich  in  doctrine, 
doctrine  is  after  all  but  the  measure  of  mighty  forces 
which  are  alive  in  his  own  experience.  No  doctrine, 
not  one,  is  for  the  intellect  alone :  all  go  out  into 
heart  and  conscience  and  life.  More  than  this :  he  lets 
us  see  that,  for  Christians,  Christ  Himself  is  the  great 
abiding  means  of  grace.  He  is  not  only  the  pledge  and 
guarantee  that  holiness  shall  be  reached:  He  is  Himself 
our  way  of  reaching  it.  He  is  so  for  the  Christian 
societies,  as  well  as  for  the  individual  Christian  soul. 

One  cannot  but  wonder  sometimes  in  reading  Paul's 


368  THE  EPISTLE   TO   THE  PHTUPPIANS. 

Epistles  what  manner  of  congregations  they  were  to 
whom  such  remarkable  letters  were  sent.  Did  they 
understand  the  deeper  and  loftier  passages  ?  Were 
Paul  and  they  on  common  ground  ?  But  the  answer 
may  be,  that  whatever  they  failed  to  attain,  they  at 
least  apprehended  a  new  world  created  for  them  by 
the  interposition  of  Christ — new  horizons,  new  possi- 
bilities, new  hopes  and  fears,  new  motives,  new  con- 
solations, new  friendships,  and  a  new  destiny.  The 
grace  of  Christ  had  made  all  new — in  which  process 
they  themselves  were  new.  Their  ''  spirit  "  had  become 
like  a  lyre  new-strung  to  render  new  harmonies.  And 
the  great  thoughts  of  the  Apostle,  if  not  always  grasped 
or  followed,  yet  made  every  string  vibrate — so  much  on 
his  part  and  so  much  on  theirs  being  sensitive  to  the 
grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus. 

Ere  long  they  all  passed  away  :  Paul  beheaded  at 
Rome,  as  the  story  goes  ;  the  Philippian  converts  dying 
out ;  and  the  world  changing  in  manners,  thought,  and 
speech,  in  all  directions.  But  the  message  entrusted 
to  Paul  lives  still,  and  awakens  the  same  response  in 
the  hearts  of  Christians  of  to-day,  as  it  did  among  the 
Philippians  when  first  read  among  them.  It  still  assures 
us  that  the  highest  thing  in  fife  has  been  found, — that 
it  meets  us  in  Him  who  came  among  us  meek,  and 
having  salvation. 


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4 


Modern  Anglican  Preachers.     r>y  C^amkr a  Ouscura. 
Crown  8vo,  price  is. 

The   Universal    Bible    Dictionary,  Based  upon   the 

I.atcst  Authorities,  liy  Kcv.  John  Macphkkson,  M. A.,  Translator 
of  Kurtz's  "Church  History,"  and  Author  of  "A  Commentary  on 
the  Epistle  to  the  Ephcsians."     8vo,  cloth,  6s. 

*,*  Based  upon  the  latest  German  authorities,  it  presents  in  a 
popular  form  the  best  results  of  Biblical  scholarship  and  research, 
and  is  issued  at  so  low  a  price  that  it  is  well  within  reach  of  Bible 
students,  Sunday-school  teachers,  and  others. 

Modern  Science  in  Bible  Lands.     By  Sir  J.  Wilf.iam 

Dawson,  C.M.G.,  LL.D.,  F.K..S..  etc.,  y\uthor  of  "The  Story  of 
the  Earth  and  Man,"  etc.  With  Map  and  Forty  Illustrations. 
Popular  Edition  revised.     Crown  8vo,  cloth,  6s. 

The  Grounds  of  Theistic   and   Christian    Belief. 

By  Geo.  P.  Fishkr,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  Author  of  "The  History  of  the 
Church,"  etc.     New  and  revised  edition,  8vo,  cloth,  los.  6d. 

The   Expositor — Fourth   Series.      Edited   1  '    Rev.    W. 
Robertson  Nicoll,  M.A.,  LL.D.     Vol.  VL     8vo,  ck  h,  ys.  6d. 

Bible  Studies  on  the  International  Sunday  S-hool 

Lessons  for  1893.  By  C^eo.  F.  I^k.ntecost,  D.D.  Crown  Svo, 
cloth,  4s. 

The  Sermon  Bible.     Vol.  X.     2  Corinthians  to  Philip- 

pians.     8vo,  cloth,  half  buckram,  7s.  6d. 

Silent  Times.     A  Book  to  Help  in  Reading  the  Bil)le 

into  Life.     By  the  Rev.  J.  R.  Mh.ler,    D.D.,  Author  of  "  Making 
the  Most  of  Life,"  etc.     Elegantly  half  bound  in  parchment  cloth 
3s.  6d. 

/.V   THE  ''SILENT  TIMES"  SERIES. 

The    Near   and   the    Heavenly  Horizons.     By  the 

Countess  de  Gasfarin.     Elegantly  bound,  3s.  6d. 


PRESENTATION  EDITION. 

Imago  Christi  :  The  Example  of  Jesus  Christ.  By 
the  Rev.  JAMKs  Stalker,  MA.,  D.D.,  Author  of  "The  Life  of 
jesus  Christ,"  "The  Life  of  St.  Paul,"'  etc.  Handsomely  bound 
in  padded  leather.  Red  under  gold  and  red  lines.  7s.  6d.  net. 
May  also  be  had  in  calf  and  Turkey  morocco. 


The  Sermon  Year  Book  for  1892,    and   Selected 

Sermons,  Outlines,  and  Texts.     Crown  8vo,  cloth,  6s. 


* 


^*  Several  new  features  are  introduced  into  this  volume.  All 
the  Sermons  by  Leading  Preachers  of  the  day  are  printed  for  the 
first  time.  A  new  section  will  be  devoted  to  Anecdotes  and  Biblical 
Illustrations  from  Sermons  of  Popular  Preachers,  and  the  volume  will 
include  a  complete  index  of  texts  and  the  titles  of  Sermons  preached 
during  the  year,  with  reference  to  periodicals  containing  the  full 
Sermon. 


ZTbe  (tla60ical  s;ran6lation  Xibran?. 

In  this  Series  will  be  included  the  Classical  Books  most  frequently 
prescribed  in  University  and  Local  Examinations.  The  special  feature 
is  that  the  Original  Text  and  the  Translation  are  printed  side  by  side. 

Fcap.  8vo,  cloth,  is.  6d.  each. 

Homer's  Iliad,   Book  XXII. 

Homer's  Odyssey,  Book  IX. 

Virgil's  iEneid,  Book  I. 

Livy,  Book  XXVII. 

The  Odes  of  Horace,  Books  I.   and  II. 

Alcestis  of  Euripides. 

Bernard  of  Clairvaux  :  The  Times,  The  Man,  and  his 
Work.     By  Richard  S.  Storrs,  D.D.,  L.L.D.     8vo,  cloth,  9s. 


Irish   Idylls.     By  Jane  Barlow,  Author  of  "Bogland 

Studies/'  etc.     Crown  8vo,  cloth,  6s. 


Clews    to    Holy    Writ  ;     or,    The    Chronological 

Scripture  Cycle.  A  Scheme  for  Studying  the  whole  Bible  in 
its  Historical  Order  during  three  years.  By  Mary  L.  G.  Petrie, 
B.A.  Lond.  Dedicated  to  the  Duchess  of  Bedford.  Crown  8vo, 
cloth,  3s.  6d. 

"This  book  has  grown  out  of  a  student's  eftbrt  to  help  other 
students,  made  in  connection  with  the  College  by  Post,  of  which  its 
author  is  founder  and  president.  The  first  papers  of  the  'Chrono- 
logical Scripture  Cycle'  were  written  in  1888,  and  when  the  scheme 
had  been  taken  up  by  nearly  fifty  of  the  correspondence  classes,  and 
also  by  over  1,400  Bible  readers,  a  general  desire  was  expressed  for 
an  issue  to  a  wider  public." 


Fellowship  with  Christ,  and  other  Discourses 
Delivered  on  Special  Occasions.  By  R.  W.  Dale,  LL.D.,  of 
Birmingham.     Third  Thousand.     Crown  8vo,  cloth,  6s. 

"  These  arc  certainly  among  the  most  massive,  and,  as  a  consequence, 
most  impressive  sermons  of  the  day.  Each  is  a  sort  of  miniature 
theological  treatise,  but  the  theology  is  alive — as  it  were,  heated 
through  and  through  by  the  fires  of  a  mighty  conviction  which  has 
become  a  passion  to  convince.  ...  In  these  sermons  there  is  a  fine 
universalism  ;  they  might  be  addressed  to  any  audience — academic, 
professional,  commercial,  artisan.  And  to  hear  them  would  be  to 
feel  that  religion  is  a  thing  to  be  believed  and  obeyed." — Speaker. 

BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOR. 
The  Living  Christ  and  the  Four  Gospels.     Sixth 

Thousand.     Crown  8vo,  cloth,  6s. 

"  Dr.  Dale's  lectures  are  truly  admirable." — Literary  Churchtiian. 

"He  proceeds  to  restate  the  evidence  for  historical  Christianity, 
and  does  it  with  the  lucidity  and  skill  of  arrangement  which  we 
expect  to  find  in  his  work.  In  less  than  two  hundred  pages  he  puts 
the  whole  argument  as  clearly  and  as  cogently  as  needs  be.  Persons 
who  are  distressed  by  destructive  criticism  cannot  do  better  than 
fortify  themselves  by  reading  this  synopsis  of  the  evidence  on  the 
side  of  belief."— Prt//  Mall  Gazette. 

To  My  Younger  Brethren  :  Chapters  on  Pastoral  Life 

and  Work.     By  the  Rev.  Handley  C.  G.  Moule,  M.A.,  Principal 
of  Ridley  Hall,  Cambridge.     Crown  8vo,  cloth,  5s. 

"Practical,  sensible,  and  devout." — Glasgow  Herald. 

"  This  is  a  valuable  work,  thoughtful  and  practical  in  a  high 
degree." — Christian. 

"  We  can  cordially  recommend  his  work  to  the  younger  clergy  as 
the  work  of  one  who,  from  the  nature  of  his  position,  has  had  unusual 
opportunities  of  observing  their  needs,  their  weaknesses,  and  their 
difficulties,  and  who  brings  to  bear  upon  his  observations  a  spirit  of 
piety  and  earnestness  and  a  keen  good  sense  which  makes  them 
worthy  of  the  closest  attention." — Church  Quarterly  Review. 

BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOR. 
I. 

Life  in   Christ  and   for  Christ.     Twelfth  Thousand. 

32mo,  cloth,  red  edges,  is. 

II. 

Vcni  Creator:   Thoughts  on  the  Person  and  Work  of 

the    Holy    Spirit   of  Promise.      Fifth    Thousand.     Crown    8vo, 
cloth,  5s. 

"  Whatever  the  Principal  of  Ridley  Hall  writes  is  worth  reading. 
There  is  in  it  always  a  spirit  of  devotion  and  practical  religion  which 
tends  to  communicate  itself  to  his  readers  with  a  blessed  contagion. 
He  has  the  power  to  bring  intense  devotional  piety  into  the  common 
concerns  of  life ;  he  helps  us  to  see  how  to  bring  the  supernatural 
into  intimate  relations  with  the  natural." — Guardian. 


Social   and    Present-day   Questions.     By   the   Vcn. 

Archdeacon  Faukar,  D.D.,  F.R.S.  Third  Edition,  8vo, 
cloth,  7s.  6d. 

"  Thoughtful,  suggestive,  and  edifying,"— J'/'w^i. 

"  To  anything  that  Dr.  Farrar  has  to  say  thousands  listen  with 
unbroken  attention  ;  and  while  he  speaks  with  the  authority  that 
attaches  to  a  life  distinguished  by  lofty  aims  and  acknowledged 
usefulness,  he  always  expresses  his  thoughts  in  language  of  extreme 
beauty,  clearness,  and  strength.  It  is  sufficient  to  say  that  here  is  a 
volume  rich  in  excellent  matter,  written  in  the  best  of  English,  into 
which  a  reader  may  dip  at  any  place  and  at  any  time,  with  profit  and 
pleasure." — Scotsman. 

The  Preacher  and  his  Models.     The  Yale  Lectures 

on  Preaching,  1891.  By  the  Rev.  James  Stalker,  D.D.,  Author 
of  "The  Life  of  Jesus  Christ,"  "The  Life  of  St.  Paul,"  etc. 
Sixth  Thousand.     Crown  Svo,  cloth,  5s. 

"  No  living  preacher  knows  better  how  to  build  a  sermon  than 
Dr.  Stalker.  A  book  on  the  art  of  which  he  is  so  skilled  a  master 
cannot  fail  to  be  read  with  the  widest  interest.  .  .  .  His  analyses 
are  full  of  subtle  insight  and  clear  thinking,  admirably  illustrated 
and  perfectly  expressed." — Modern  Church. 


BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOR. 

Imago  Christi :  The  Example  of  Jesus  Christ.    Twentieth 
Thousand,     Crown  Svo,  cloth,  5s. 

"  An  immortal  book." — Mr.  Spurgeon. 

"The  execution  is  full  of  ingenuity,  and  the  book  can  be  recom- 
mended as  a  devout  and  thoughtful  commentary  on  practical  Christian 
life  in  many  phases.  Mr.  Stalker  has  broad  sympathies  and  a 
watchful  eye,  and  speaks  in  a  tone  that  will  commend  itself  to  all  his 
readers." — Saturday  Revieiv. 


Studies  in  Scottish  History :  Chiefly  Ecclesiastical. 
By  A.  Taylor  Innes,  M,A,  Advocate,  Author  of  "  The  Law  of 
Creeds  in  Scotland,"  etc,     Cro^n  Svo,  cloth,  5s. 

"An  English  reader  will  find  in  this  prettily  printed  and  well- 
written  little  book  some  delightful,  and  many  interesting,  pages,  and 
a  good  deal  of  matter  for  thought  and  consideration.  With  hearty 
commendation  we  may  leave  this  book,  which  exhibits  so  placably, 
wisely,  and  shrewdly  the  bright  side  of  the  Free  Kirk." — Manchester 
Guardian. 


London:    HODDER   &    STOUGHTON,    27.    Paternoster  Row. 

8 


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